Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has called Act Party leader David Seymour an “arrogant prick” as she took her seat in Parliament this afternoon, following questions in the House of Representatives.

Ardern has since apologised to Seymour for the remarks.

Seymour told media: “Some days I am a useless Māori, others days I am an arrogant prick.

 “The apology we are really looking for is for New Zealanders worried about rising prices and ram raids.

“Jacinda Ardern texted me and said, ‘I apologise, it’s not something I should have said and she said, as my mum would say, if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it’.

”I agree with the sentiment and it is all good as far as I am concerned. I just said, thank you and I hope you have a very Merry Christmas. At the end of the day, it’s not the end of the world.”

Seymour had been asking Ardern a series of questions relating to senior Labour MP Nanaia Mahuta’s performance, hate speech reforms and other policies.

After answering, as Ardern takes her seat, she can be heard saying to Grant Robertson, who sits beside her: “Such an arrogant prick.”

It was presumably a reference to Seymour.

Such remarks would ordinarily not be heard, but Ardern’s desk microphone picked up the comment.

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Seymour later petitioned Speaker Adrian Rurawhe to have Ardern withdraw the remark and apologise.

Rurawhe did not immediately allow that, noting the remark was not reported in Hansard.