Then there were three ...

The world was watching as Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern went into labour, and so was Parliament – even if the politicians tried to pretend it was business as usual. Acting Prime Minister Winston Peters grumbled at journalists about calling the birth ‘‘historic’’, the Opposition went on the attack about Government incompetence and Parliament went into urgency to argue about regional fuel taxes.

It was just another day in Wellington yesterday. Except it wasn’t.

The low-key approach says as much about the way Ardern treated her pregnancy as it does about her fellow MPs.

The sight of a heavily pregnant and gumbootclad Ardern striding out in the Fieldays mud just three days out from her due date should be remembered as one of those extraordinary moments in New Zealand politics.

Yet it remained true to Ardern’s mantra that she was no different to many other women who have to work right through their pregnancy.

In the same mould of ‘‘keeping things real’’, it was partner Clarke Gayford who drove Ardern to hospital early yesterday morning, even though they have burly diplomatic protection squad members on call.

As former prime minister Helen Clark noted, we took news of Ardern’s pregnancy in our stride as a nation. It was a sign of our maturity as a country and acceptance that combining career and family was a choice that woman were free to make, Clark said.

But there is nothing low key about this birth. It will be one of the defining moments of this Government’s first term.

The Opposition are resigned to the baby news sucking up most of the political oxygen for the next few days and weeks before the novelty of a new mum being prime minister wears off.

But after the initial flurry her experience as a new parent will continue to give Ardern cut through on the issues of generational change that helped sweep her into power – and not just on the national stage.

Ardern had already achieved international profile as a young, female, left wing leader and being the first woman in 30 years to give birth in office has only elevated her celebrity status.

That will give her voice greater resonance on the world stage, including at global events like the United Nations’ General Assembly, which she will address at some stage during her first term.

It will be up to Ardern how she chooses to use that platform – the one certainty is that she will get more attention there than is usual for New Zealand leaders.

It was just another day in Wellington yesterday. Except it wasn’t.