Paula Bennett PM for the day

Paula Bennett. Photo NZ Herald
Paula Bennett. Photo NZ Herald
Meet your new Prime Minister: Paula Bennett. Acting Prime Minister, that is.

With all of her more senior colleagues out of the country, Bennett is in charge of the country for 24 hours.

She is the fifth-ranked MP in Cabinet.

Prime Minister John Key is in India with a business delegation, Deputy Prime Minister Bill English and Steven Joyce are in Australia for a leadership forum, and Gerry Brownlee is returning from a counter-ISIS conference in France.

Brownlee will return tomorrow morning to take over the reins.

The last time a fifth-ranked MP was made Acting Prime Minister was when Tony Ryall was in charge for three days in 2009 while the top four ministers were in Australia.

Add a Comment