Jacinda Ardern's 'arrogant prick' slur has netted $100,000 for a worthy cause

The New Zealand prime minister's faux pas on the microphone was turned into a force for good after raising funds for "pricks everywhere".

New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern raised $100,000 with her opposition rival David Seymour after describing him as an "arrogant prick". Source: Facebook / Jacinda Ardern

KEY POINTS

• New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern slipped up on the microphone and she raised $100,000 for prostate cancer.
• Ms Ardern was caught calling her rival an "arrogant prick" in parliament last week.
• Since then, she and David Seymour signed and sold the Hansard with her comment, donating the proceeds to charity.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern took a seemingly wrong step by swearing at her opposition rival in parliament last week, which was picked up by a microphone.

But in a positive twist, her inadvertently public jibe in the parliament Hansard has ended up raising NZ$100,100 ($93,733) for a prostate cancer charity.

Ms Ardern quietly called ACT Party leader David Seymour an "arrogant prick" during a grilling in the NZ parliament, but it was captured on a nearby microphone.

The prime minister apologised to Mr Seymour and, together, they joined forces for good.

Both Ms Ardern and Mr Seymour signed the parliament transcript where her insult was recorded, which was framed and placed on auction.

The frame was auctioned via the online classifieds website Trade Me to raise funds for the Prostate Cancer Foundation New Zealand.

The Hansard that captured Ms Ardern's comments was framed and signed by the NZ prime minister and David Seymour. Credit: trade_dave

Mr Seymour suggested the idea to Ms Ardern, who immediately agreed with placing the frame on auction.

The auction received nearly 300 bids and was the top listing on the marketplace this year, with more than 400,000 viewers throughout the week.

Ms Ardern thanked her rival-turned-charity partner for being a "good sport".

"Can’t say I expected this…..a faux pas with the old mic in parliament has turned into $100,100 for the Prostate Cancer Foundation," she wrote on Facebook.

And Mr Seymour, the target of the initial insult, said the contribution has the priceless potential to save lives.

"This auction has been a wild ride, from the words that started it, to the sky-rocketing price it sold for," he wrote on Facebook on Thursday.

"I want to thank everyone for coming together over a good cause and having a bit of fun this Christmas to help pricks everywhere."