Happy to stay across the ditch . . . for now
Vicky Freeman, the face of the Budget who gave up on New Zealand and shifted across the Tasman, says even Labour’s newly announced wellbeing policies aren’t enough to lure her back.
“In the future, probably. Can I bring the sunshine and surf with me? Absolutely!”
A photo of solo mum Freeman, 41, and her daughter Ruby-Jean, 9, was emblazoned across the cover of Grant Robertson’s Wellbeing Budget when it rolled off the presses during the week.
But the Herald revealed that Freeman had found New Zealand to be too expensive a place for her to live — so she had decided to move with her daughter to Australia’s Gold Coast.
The revelations sparked a storm in Parliament, with National Party leader Simon Bridges accusing the Government of “spin”.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern responded that the Budget was similar to the National caucus room.
“Regardless of the smiling faces on the front, it’s what happens on the inside that really matters,” Ardern said.
Speaking to the Weekend Herald yesterday, Freeman said she agreed with those sentiments.
“It shouldn’t be about the people on the cover moving to Australia.”
She said she was amazed by the level of media interest surrounding her move across the ditch which had “all just got a bit blown up”.
Freeman was pleased that Ardern sent her a personal message yesterday in response to an online query about why the Government had chosen daughter Ruby-Jean and herself for its glossy Budget document. In a reply on Instagram, Ardern said the Budget was all about “happiness”. “Simple reason, really — happiness. You both looked really happy.”
Freeman replied cheekily from the Gold Coast: “We are.”
It was kind of Ardern to have taken time out from her busy schedule to respond, Freeman said.
“I know she’s a people person so I was kind of just waiting.”
The actress and model admitted she had not taken much interest in the finer details of the Budget. But she liked the focus on wellbeing and was positive about higher payments for beneficiaries and axing parental donations at many schools.
But were the changes enough to lure her back? “In the future but not right now. I’ve just moved and me and my daughter are very happy.
“I love my country. I’m indigenous to the land. I belong in New Zealand. It would be nice to be able to come home and be happy and . . . not struggle.” Asked if it was a wrench to leave her homeland, she said it was hard turning her back on the great work opportunities that were emerging before she left, which included Shortland Street and television advertisements.
But she had to make the best decision for herself and her girl. “I’m one of those people that strive. I want a better life for me and my daughter and want to be able to buy a house and that wasn’t looking likely in Auckland, but it is . . . here.” However, Freeman wanted to stress that economic considerations were not the only reason for fleeing her birth land for the lucky country.
She had spent about a decade living there in her 20s and had many fond memories of her earlier time in Australia.
“I used to own a Kombi [van] and cruised around surfing. That was my 20s, that was my happy place.”