“Ah there you are! Queen holds Zoom with New Zealand Governor General Dame Cindy Kiro
The Queen held a video call with New Zealand’s new Governor General on Tuesday morning as she wished him luck ahead of her swearing-in ceremony next week.
She greeted Dame Cindy Kiro, the first Indigenous woman appointed to this role, with an exclamation of surprise, as she raised her finger and remarked, “Ah, there you are… Good evening.”
Dame Cindy, 63, replied: “Hello.”
Suddenly realizing the jet lag, the Queen smiles and says, “Oh sure, that’s hello, isn’t it, to you? “
She called the Governor General-designate’s swearing-in on Thursday a “big day.” Dame Cindy said, “It will be a great day. Something that you have experienced many times, with many governors general.
The queen laughed and said: “Indeed, yes.”
During the conference, the monarch invested Dame Cindy with the traditional insignia of the Governor General.
The Governor General is the personal representative of the Sovereign in New Zealand and generally holds office for five years.
Dame Cindy Kiro was announced by the Queen as the new Governor General in May, succeeding Dame Patsy Reddy.
She previously held various faculty positions at several New Zealand universities.
In 2003, she became the first woman, and Maori, to be appointed Children’s Commissioner in New Zealand.
Most recently, she was pro MÄori Vice-Chancellor at the University of Auckland and Executive Director of the Royal Society Te ApÄrangi.