Speaking to Television New Zealand, Ms Ardern, who became the world’s youngest female head of government at the age of 37,  admitted that her fellow countrymen were facing one of the hardest moments New Zealand had been through in many years,

“We are in the peak of the pandemic, we have a global energy shock which everyone is feeling as a result of the war and we have Covid-related inflation,” she said.

“Families are feeling it.”

Chris Luxon, leader of the National Party, said the poll reflected the people’s frustration with the government over the “cost of living crisis” as he accused Labour of not having a plan.

“It certainly doesn’t have any solutions,” he added.

“We are strong economic managers and we do have ideas on how to take them forward.”

Despite Labour’s overall fall in popularity, the opinion poll found that Ms Ardern remained the country’s preferred prime minister.

She enjoyed 34 per cent support among those surveyed compared with 25 per cent for Mr Luxon.