Chris' labour of love 'IT'S REALLY SPECIAL'

Away from the Beehive, our Leader of the Opposition is buzzing with happiness!

- Emma Clifton

When asked what he would like more of in 2025 and less of, Chris Hipkins gives an immediate – and characteristically enthusiastic – answer.

“I would like less of the divisiveness and more of the togetherness,” he says, chatting to the Weekly from his home in Upper Hutt.

“In this job, you get to see the best of Kiwis, but you also get to see the not-so-great. So I’d like to see more of the best – the moments where you get to meet people who are passionate about what they’re doing. That’s the stuff that gets you energized to go to work every day.”

The last time The Weekly sat down with Chris, he was prime minister and preparing for the 2023 election – and we know how that went. Now he’s been Leader of the Opposition for more than a year and that trademark enthusiasm hasn’t dimmed in the slightest. In fact, he’s one of the rare politicians who is known for his beaming smile. So does he consider himself a naturally optimistic person?

“Overall, yes, but I do believe in the difference between optimism and hope,” he says. “Optimism is the belief that everything’s just going to get better. Hope is the belief that things can get better if you’re willing to work for it.

“So I think I’m probably more of a hopeful person in the sense that I see that things can get better, but we have to work to make that happen.”