CARMEL SEPULONI I'VE ALWAYS BEEN A FIGHTER!

Our former deputy PM the lessons she's learnt in politics on CTI

Former deputy prime minister Carmel Sepuloni is her usual gentle self as she chats to Woman's Day ahead of filming Celebrity Treasure Island. Cool, calm and collected, her main aim is to be as genuine as possible.

"In politics and also just generally, I've always thought it's important to be your authentic self and not try to be anyone other than who you are," shares the Waitara-born politician, 46 "In this game, that's important to me too."

Looking back on when she was first elected to Parliament in 2008, becoming New Zealand's first MP of Tongan descent, Carmel says she had to learn that lesson the hard way.

"I was quite a young MP and it all happened so quickly, so it took me a while to actually work out how I operated in that space," she explains. "When I didn't get re-elected, I realised I didn't have to pretend to be anybody else and I took three years out. I had time to think and just grow a little bit.

"By the time I got back in to Parliament [in 2014], I'd had a chance to assess my own skills, what I bring and what my strengths are, then I could apply them as who I am. That was when my career as a politician really started to flourish."