Coronavirus: Jacinda Ardern's 'unhelpful' talk of an 'alert level 2.5' stresses 'desperate' businesses

Friday, 8 May 2020

News that people will be be able to travel around the country under Alert Level 2 is a huge boost for the tourism industry.

Business is calling on the Government to move the country to alert level 2 on Monday, saying 'every day counts' for thousands of businesses that remain closed.

In a plea to the Government, Business NZ chief executive Kirk Hope said on Friday afternoon that businesses wanted to reopen as soon as possible, and stressed that the active case numbers of Covid-19 were low.

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Business NZ chief executive Kirk Hope is urging a move to level 2 now, to allow businesses to begin recovery.

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'Every day counts for thousands of businesses that are still closed. The longer they stay closed the more they risk losing everything.

'Many businesses are living in fear of not being able to reopen, while others fear reopening in an economy that's been closed so long it can no longer sustain their businesses,' he said.

Hope said the move could be justified because the Covid-19 statistics were good and contact tracing was in effect.

Snip hairdressers in Wellington remains closed under alert level 3.

'Testing numbers are excellent, with 3.6 per cent of the population tested so far. New Zealand is 27th out of 212 areas and countries for tests per head of population and we can continue to improve on that.'

A similar call came from the Employers and Manufacturers Association on Friday, which said the survival of New Zealand's businesses should now be the Government's focus.

Association chief executive Brett O'Riley said that moving to alert level 2 was the only thing that could revive business and kick start the recovery.

Employers and Manufacturers Association chief executive Brett O'Riley says talk of an alert level 2.5 was confusing and unhelpful at a time when businesses needed clarity.

'We've been bold around containing Covid-19, let's show the same determination to get people working again,' he said.

'The number of businesses seeking assistance with planning for survival beyond current Covid-19 restrictions underpins the need for Government to make a quick and decisive call to introduce alert level 2 operations from early next week,' he said.

The EMA's business assistance line received nearly 1000 calls in the past week, and around half of those were seeking advice on how to keep their businesses operating when restrictions were lifted.

O'Riley criticised comments made by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Thursday about the possibility of a managed step from alert level 3 to alert level 2. He said the comments were confusing at time when businesses needed certainty.

Ardern indicated that the move to level 2 might not happen all at once.

Jarrod Kerr, chief economist at Kiwibank says the country should come out of alert level 3 now.

'Moving into level 2 is a large step, we would rather start that journey than to wait back in level 3 longer than we need to, but it may be that we get advice that the higher risk elements of level 2 may need a little more time,' she said.

But O'Riley said this was 'unhelpful'.

'Why announce level 2 guidelines only to muddy those guidelines by talking about a version 2.5 that no-one knows anything about?'

Businesses had worked hard to implement health and safety procedures for operating under the alert levels 4 and 3 and were ready to do the same at level 2.

Any deficiencies had already been weeded out and businesses were 'desperate' to get back to work, he said.

Government needed to trust businesses to operate responsibly. Further delays to moving to level 2 would create resentment and confusion which could lead to further guideline breaches as people vent their frustrations, O'Riley said.

Earlier this week, Kiwibank chief economist Jarrod Kerr also urged the government to come out of level 3, saying it was difficult for the Government to justify staying at level 3.

'I think it is time to get passionate and broaden the debate … We are in quite a precarious situation right now where a lot of companies are up against a wall, hanging on to lifelines,' he said.

Kerr said he was 'disappointed' by a lack of clarity from the Government on how it might respond to future coronavirus cases or clusters.

He suggested that if there was a future coronavirus case in a suburb of Whangarei for example, the Government could consider returning just that suburb to level 3.

A broader return to higher alert levels would 'really hurt,' he said.