Going its own way in a messy world, New Zealand offers an alternate parable on China | Katharine Murphy

Anthony Albanese avoids radical departures from a China narrative that aligns with the US, but Jacinda Ardern has a collectivist pitch

When Jacinda Ardern came to office, her empathic progressivism was a beacon in the reactionary populism of the time. She wasn't the only sensible person on the world stage. Emmanuel Macron arrived as the president of France in the same year, and Angela Merkel, the European titan, exemplified the sensible centre right.

But the young New Zealand prime minister came to power in the era of Donald Trump, Boris Johnson and Scott Morrison - a time of post-truth insanity in Washington, Brexit in London, and climate wars in Australia.