Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has defended taking partner Clarke Gayford on a trip to Antarctica, despite space being limited due to redevelopment work at Scott Base.
Ardern said that with expensive beds at the base, they “shared a bunk bed,” and Gayford’s presence did not crowd out any “scientist, researcher or anyone who was part of the redevelopment work.”
Ardern said other prime ministers had also brought their husbands with them in the past – in 2013, John Key took his wife Bronagh, and in 2007 Helen Clark traveled with husband Peter Davis.
Ardern landed in Antarctica on Wednesday afternoon aboard a United States Air Force C-17 Globemaster, the largest aircraft flying from Christchurch.
It came after an aborted first attempt on Tuesday when NZ Defense Force C-130H Hercules had to return due to inclement weather in McMurdo Sound.
Ardern, an avid Antarctic history buff with explorer Ernest Shackleton as one of her personal heroes, said it was a “true honor and privilege” to be there on her first visit, “five years in the making”.
While an opposition MP in 2017 Ardern was slated to go down but had to cancel when the Mt Albert by-election was announced.
Ardern said this year’s visit coincided with Scott Base’s 65th anniversary and came at a “critical moment” of the country’s presence there.
The government has pledged nearly $350 million for the redevelopment of the base and the Ross Island wind farm, which is expected to be completed in 2028, which Ardern said would primarily support the “incredibly important” work of scientists there.
The current base, built in the early 1980s and consisting of 12 buildings, will be replaced by three terraced buildings that can accommodate up to 100 people.
The new base, built on the same site, will have an accommodation, dining and welfare building, a science and management building, and an engineering and storage building.
“It’s an important project, it’s going to take several years, it’s going to create hundreds of jobs in New Zealand, because of the way it’s built,” Ardern said.
“It is a project with a high dollar value. But if you think about the importance of the research helping us ensure we have a planet that we can inhabit in the future, what price do you put on that?”
New Zealand is one of seven countries with territorial claims to Antarctica, alongside Australia, France, Norway, the United Kingdom, Chile and Argentina. Other countries also have bases and facilities there, and along with New Zealand, they are trying to expand their presence, including China building its fifth research station.
Cooperation between the Antarctic States Parties, particularly the United States, New Zealand’s Antarctic neighbor and a partner at McMurdo Station for more than 60 years, would also be a focus of Ardern’s journey.
Ardern said another important aspect of her journey was to see the work of New Zealand scientists firsthand.
“The activity being undertaken down here is so relevant to us right now, especially climate work.
“The funding that has gone into climate-based research here has formed the basis of the global target or limit of two degrees for climate change.
“Other scientists focus on the spread of bird diseases. Others specialize in volcanic activity and learn from the volcanic activity so that we can better know and understand some of the dangers we live with every day.
“We work a lot with other countries and our work down here. But in many cases New Zealand plays a very strong grassroots role, especially climate-based research.”
As Associate Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage, Arden said she was also responsible for the Antarctic Heritage Trust and for preserving and caring for Antarctic explorers’ artifacts, including cabins.
She said that while few people were able to physically visit them, they were already using virtual reality to “bring to life” huts, including Sir Edmund Hillary’s, in schools. There were also plans to do the same for Ernest Shackleton’s cabin.
Ardern said her partner Gayford had visited Antarctica about 15 years ago.
-By Michael Neilson