Next New Zealand PM slams ‘abhorrent’ treatment of Ardern

WELLINGTON: New Zealand’s incoming prime minister Chris Hipkins criticised the “abhorrent” treatment endured by Jacinda Ardern and vowed on Sunday to shield his own family, three days after her shock resignation.Hours after being unanimously endorsed by Labour Party MPs as the party's leader and the nation's next prime minister, Hipkins attacked the personal abuse suffered by Ardern during her more than five years in the top job.Ardern sparked a national debate about the pressures she faced when she revealed Thursday that she was stepping down just nine months before October 14 general elections, saying she no longer had “enough in the tank”.Politicians and other public figures have lined up to criticise the “vitriol” Ardern was subjected to as prime minister, notably on social media, although she did not mention it herself.“The way Jacinda has been treated, particularly by some segments of our society -- and they are a small minority -- has been utterly abhorrent,“ Hipkins said.“It do