NZ PM Jacinda Ardern Covering Couple of Questions & Government Announcement

NZ PM Jacinda Ardern Covering Couple of Questions & Government Announcement

Kia ora all. In my last few posts, I’ve asked that you add any questions you may have regarding COVID-19 into the comments, and lots of you did. So, in today’s update, I’m going to be covering off a couple of them, along with giving you some more information on the Government announcements made today. As always, forgive the length of this post!

Many of you are in different parts of the country but trying to get home. We’ve been keeping an eye on demand and space on flights and ferries between the North and South Island, and we know people have struggled to get tickets. We’ll make sure these keep running till midnight Friday to give people the chance to get home, but I do want to highlight again that this is so people can get home for self isolation.

Our Minister of Transport Phil Twyford announced extra support for the aviation sector to ensure New Zealanders continue to have access to imported essential goods, like medicine, during our 4-weeks in self isolation.

We’re also doing everything we can to ensure that New Zealanders have the support they need during these difficult times.

That’s why we’ve extended the wage subsidy scheme that is in place. We have also announced a freeze on rental increases, and are ensuring people cannot be evicted during this period.

This is an unprecedented global event, with unprecedented health and financial impacts. We will not be able to save every business and every job, but we’re working to cushion the blow and our priority is on ensuring that workers who cannot go to work continue to receive some form of income.

Support is available. I’d urge you to reach out if you need it, and just be mindful that phone calls and processes may take a little bit longer than normal while we all work through these big changes.

Now, for a few questions. I’ve seen plenty of questions about the COVID-19 Alert Levels and what they mean in practicality for New Zealanders across the country. Hopefully, this post can help to further clarify the impact the levels will have for you, your family, your businesses and your jobs.

Firstly, as announced yesterday, we are currently at Alert Level 3. This means that all non-essential businesses must now close. All bars, restaurants, cafes, gyms, cinemas, pools, museums, churches, libraries, playgrounds and other places where the public congregates must close their face to face functions.

Gatherings of any kind are also cancelled, and, as much as possible, we are asking you to move towards fully self-isolating. This means New Zealanders not working in essential services (such as food, medicine, healthcare, energy, fuel, waste-removal, internet and finance) should stay at home and stop any interactions with those who are outside of their household.

Of course, if you need essentials, get them in, if you need medicine, buy it. But remember, essential services such as healthcare and grocery stores will remain open and stocked at all alert levels. There is no need to panic buy anything.

From 11.59pm tomorrow, the country will move to Alert Level 4. This level is about reducing contact between people to the bare minimum. All schools will be closed, all non-essential businesses will be closed, all non-essential travel will be restricted and physical distancing must be observed. That means 2 metres at all times.

This is the single most important thing we can do right now to stop further community transmission. A good way to think of it is this: the virus does not spread itself, people spread the virus.

We will need to adhere to these rules for at least the next 4 weeks, and I want to be frank with you about why we took these decisions as I hope it will make it easier for you to make the right choices for you and your fellow Kiwis over the next month.

New medical modelling considered by Cabinet this week suggested that without the measures I have just explained, tens of thousands of New Zealanders could die from COVID-19. With the measures, we have a small window to get ahead of it.

So, if you do not need to leave your home, please don’t. Failure to play your part in the coming days will literally put the lives of thousands of others at risk.

Every interaction you have with people outside of your immediate household increases the chances of the virus being passed on. I’ve mentioned before that you may want to go for a walk to get some fresh air and this is fine, but you must avoid coming into close contact with other people (keep a 2 metre distance) and ensure you’re staying away from public facilities such as benches and playgrounds where the virus can survive on surfaces.

This will obviously cause huge disruption to people’s lives. This is going to be difficult for us all, and the way we do things will need to change for a while. But it is the only real option we have to ensure we protect the health and wellbeing of New Zealanders. Again, it’s about saving fellow Kiwis’ lives.

I cannot stress enough the need for every New Zealander to follow the advice I have laid out today. We’re in this together and must unite against COVID-19.

Finally, I’ll try to keep you updated daily. But in the meantime, be kind, stay home, and save lives.