More 'safe' activity will be allowed at level 3, but it won't be a return to normal

Wednesday, 15 April 2020

The Government will switch its emphasis to allowing 'safe' and not just 'essential' economic activity when it brings the country out of its level 4 lockdown, Finance Minister Grant Robertson has said.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is set to announce on Monday whether the level 4 lockdown will come to end at midnight next Wednesday or whether it will be extended.

Although the country spent a couple of days at 'level-3' before going into full lockdown, the rules that will prevail during a return to level 3 may be different.

Robertson told BusinessNZ that the Government would release guidance on Thursday on how businesses could operate 'under reduced alert levels and what measures need to be taken for them to do so'.

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He did not provide a list of what businesses might be allowed to reopen, but indicated the goal would be to expand allowable economic activities to allow those that were safe but non-essential.

'If we are ready to move to alert level 3, businesses will have two days to implement arrangements,' he said.

'In order to support that, tomorrow we will release guidance for how businesses could operate under reduced alert levels and what measures need to be taken for them to do so.'

The Government would aim to give as much clarity in advance as possible, he said.

'This means developing some basic principles for safe economic activity and then working through that on a sector-by-sector basis, and providing examples to businesses to guide their decisions.

'What I can say now is that our emphasis at level 3 moves from 'essential' economic activity to 'safe' economic activity,' he said.

Businesses were changing their practices to be able to operate in a safer way, he said.

'The critical questions are: is it possible for your business to have social distancing? Can you build in contact-tracing tools or mechanisms to keep track of your supply chain and customers?'

Retail NZ chief executive Greg Harford said it was awaiting details but had picked up that the 'new' level 3 would be more restrictive than the 'old' level 3 that New Zealand went into for two days in March.

He hoped online shopping would be allowed as normal, as well as 'click and collect' type arrangements at stores 'as long as that can be managed safely'.

Harford also hoped retailers would be able to let customers into their shops if they could ensure social distancing.

'It is not going to be practical in all cases.'

Harford said some businesses had been 'seething with indignation over the unfairness of some of the rules that have been in place'.

'Some businesses are operating and are some trying to do the right thing and not.' 

One of the main areas of confusion during level 4 had been specialty food stores, and whether they could sell online, he said.

'The issue has been we have been hearing the rules announced at various press conferences and there is no way for business owners to talk to anyone in government about what is going on, because the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment people are frantic and not keeping up with emails.' 

The Road Transport Forum has been lobbying heavily for businesses to be able to transport, receive and unpack all freight even under level 4, to avoid a logistics logjam as alert levels are relaxed.

Broadcasting Minister Faafoi said he also hoped to provide information to magazine and community newspaper owners soon on how they could operate at alert levels 2 and 3.

He said one of the reasons the Government had initially imposed a total ban on community newspapers was that many were distributed for 'pocket money' by young people, who the Government wanted to keep safe from infection.

Hospitality NZ chief executive Julie White said her members were preparing to offer contactless food delivery and takeaways, but needed detail on the 'new' level 3 restrictions to work out how they could operate within the rules. 

'Apparently it's not going to be like the old level 3.'

Dining options were likely to be limited.

'Not a lot of hospitality operators will be able to operate at level 3 because their business model doesn't allow for it. 

'A fine dining restaurant with 100 seats will not be able to survive on a  takeaway or home delivery model.'

And White said it would take time for food outlets to get back up and running again.

'We have to do new menus, order stock and arrange staff, we can't just walk in and turn the lights on.'

The Aotearoa Vapers Community Advocacy joined the clamour, calling for 'specialist R18' vape stores to be allowed to open on public health grounds, illustrating the myriad of trade-offs ministers might be forced to consider.

'There's a real risk of New Zealand's smoking rates creeping back up if the accessibility of vaping remains reduced while tobacco products continue to be available as per usual,' its director Nancy Loucas said.

The New Zealand Initiative called on Tuesday for a 'more flexible, risk-based approach' to determining what was allowed at alert Level 3 and said then that it was pleased to hear Robertson was 'thinking along the same lines'.

But Westpac has cautioned that a too-short 'failed lockdown' could be a worse outcome for economy in long run than extending the duration of alert level 4 until the virus had actually been stamped out from New Zealand.

'If the virus resurges later, the Government would have to return us to alert level 4. That would shake the confidence of businesses just getting back on their feet, create ongoing uncertainty, and would effectively extend the period of economic stasis,' the bank warned on Tuesday.

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