We’ve done the mahi – it’s time for the treats

“No wonder we have a productivity problem when even the Prime Minister takes 22 minutes to deliver 2 minutes of information,” says ACT Leader David Seymour.

“Jacinda seems to have a case of separation anxiety, she can’t let go of control. She keeps announcing and restricting while the economy slides into recession.

“Jacinda gave us 22-minute history of COVID in New Zealand, we all lived through it, we didn’t need to be patronised with a recap.

“A real leader would cut to the chase and then be open to scrutiny from journalists, not preach to us at length.

“The Prime Minister’s real problem is that she’s leaned into fear as a means of control for two years and doesn’t know how to shut down the fear factory. Having fed the fear she has to keep feeding the fear, so we keep nonsensical restrictions for another week for reasons of political theatre.

“We’ve done the mahi, but we have to wait for visitors to arrive to get the treats. Waiting until 5 April for vaccine passes and mandates to go makes no sense. They should go immediately.

“Mandates and passes have segregated some people from society. ACT says it’s time to move on, today. ACT has always said people should have been able to undergo regular testing as an alternative.

“A gathering limit of 200 with seating rules still in place will be little relief for the hospitality sector. This is just more control from Government.

“There are parts of the announcement we do welcome. Outdoor gathering limits don’t make sense. We’re pleased to see the back of them. QR codes also no longer make sense, they should go immediately, why are we waiting until the weekend?"

“New Zealanders are fed up. It’s time to move on. The traffic light system should go. We don’t need small tweaks; we need real change. We need to see the light at the end of the tunnel. The 22-minute speech that should have taken 2 minutes was not worth the wait.”