Helen Clark World's 100 Most Powerful Women". By the time she left office in 2008 this had fallen to 56th. The 1999 general election produced a historic moment for New Zealand; for the first time, two women, Clark and Shipley, campaigned against each other as leaders of the country’s two major parties. Labour won 49 seats, an increase of 12, ahead of National's 39 seats. The first Clark-led Cabinet linked Labour with the left-wing Alliance Party. Alliance leader Jim Anderton served as Deputy Prime Minister under Clark until 2002. The coalition partners pioneered "agree to disagree" procedures to manage policy differences. Such
Helen Clark of Labour and Deputy Prime Minister in August 1989. As Health Minister, Clark introduced a series of legislative changes that allowed midwives to practice autonomously. She also introduced the Smoke-free Environments Act 1990, a law which restricted smoking in places such as workplaces and schools. As Deputy Prime Minister, Clark chaired the Cabinet Social Equity Committee, and was a member of several other important Cabinet committees, such as the Policy Committee, Economic Development and Employment Committee, and Domestic and External Security Committee. From October 1990 until December 1993 Clark held the posts of Deputy Leader of the Opposition, Shadow spokesperson