The pandemic response is like driving a car

Written By: - Date published: 3:58 pm, November 19th, 2021 - 11 comments
Categories: uncategorized - Tags:

We live in interesting times and there is so much to think and write about. I’ve been mulling the mandate hot potato and some of its more predictable (as in likely) consequences but I’ll leave that for now because I’m getting all steamed up when I start stewing and my thoughts & emotions become a hapless mash.

Government has placed an unhealthy [pardon the pun] emphasis on vaccination to protect Kiwis against Covid-19 and to allow unlocking the cage to let Aucklanders out before Christmas. However, behind and underneath the PR it is clear that vaccination is not a silver bullet by a long shot, as seen in highly vaccinated countries in the Northern hemisphere. It may be Communication-101 to make & keep the message as simple as possible, but no simpler. However, Government may want to give Kiwis a little more credit in understanding complex issues and the associated ‘demands’ that authorities place upon them.

Both Priddy [Dr Frances Priddy, vaccine development specialist and executive director of Vaccine Alliance Aotearoa New Zealand (Ohu Kaupare Huaketo)] and Sika-Paotonu [Dr Diane Sika-Paotonu, immunologist at the University of Otago’s Medical School in Wellington and also Otago’s Associate Dean (Pacific)] said vaccinations alone will not protect New Zealand from more spread of the virus: following public health advice – including gathering outdoors instead of indoors, social distancing and wearing masks – will all contribute to managing the outbreak. Stuff

Indeed, measures such as proper handwashing, proper mask-wearing (incl. PPE for frontline workers), and appropriate social/physical distancing are easy and cheap to implement and highly effective in reducing the risk of Covid-19. They almost certainly have helped keeping many Kiwis safe from the virus and still do so today. New Zealand Covid-19 numbers still remain remarkably low by international standards thanks to the concerted Government and public responses to the pandemic and a healthy dose of luck by virtue of our relatively isolated location and seasonal factors, which have bought us vital time to respond.

Management of Covid-19 has been likened to a Swiss cheese. Although this is quaint I’d imagine that not many people relate themselves and their actions to a Swiss cheese. A more relatable analogy would be the act of driving a car and being the driver.

There’s not a single measure that keeps us safe on the roads. It is the combination of many different things (factors) that integrate into the overall outcome of getting us from A to B in one piece, as they say. The single most important factor is the human one, i.e. the driver. Driving skills and safety awareness take time and practice to achieve a satisfactory standard – a bit like growing up and becoming a mature adult or so I’ve been told. This is reflected in the driver licences associated with each learning phase and skill level. Unsurprisingly, these licences are colour-coded.

Once you have obtained your full licence you don’t become bullet-proof or indestructible, not instantly and not ever, and can you drop all other safety measures. For example, you still have to buckle up, you still have to drive to the conditions, you still have to make sure your car is safe and roadworthy, et cetera. Nobody likes to be told what to do but once you’ve been told & taught the rules and they’ve become ingrained and almost instinctive habits (e.g. fastening your seatbelt when hopping in the car) they do the trick of achieving the desired outcome, which in this example would be to keep you safe on the road, especially if the large majority of road users does the same. The same applies to your vaccination status, which lowers your risk of Covid-19, but this layer of protection is not absolutely 100% perfect and it works better the more people are vaccinated aka so-called herd or population immunity.

We all know that after many years our driving skills may no longer be quite up to standard; we may get sloppy and complacent when it comes to certain things and bad habits can gradually replace the good initial and intended ones. The protection from vaccination also drops over time due to waning immune response. Some (all?) drivers who got their licence many years ago could do with a refresher course and similarly, some (all?) vaccinated people could benefit from getting a booster shot after more than 6 months since their second jab.

We also know, or should know, that many traffic accidents are almost entirely preventable. Even the best driver with the safest car and under the best road conditions can cause an accident if they take unnecessary risks – there’s no easy cure for human stupidity aka brain explosions and a third-party insurance won’t bring anybody back from the dead; prevention is the best option. The same applies to Covid-19 and solely relying on your much-coveted vaccination pass is foolhardy. The opposite is true too: unvaccinated or not-yet-fully vaccinated people (incl. children) are not necessarily ticking time bombs that do and will instantly kill scores of innocent and unlucky bystanders despite their best efforts to be protected.

The future remains a tad uncertain. There’s concern that opening the Auckland borders on 15 December could lead to thousands of positive cases each week. Government, or Dr Ashley Bloomfield rather, seems to think that it won’t be nearly as bad as the worst-case models predict. I’m with Dr Bloomfield on this one. Part of the reason is how many models work, e.g. they use sound data from crash-test dummies to predict the chances of survival from a major impact with an immoveable object (e.g. a concrete barrier). The thing is that in practice (reality) not many people die when their car hits an immovable object because if they did exactly as in the crash tests they would indeed die in the numbers almost exactly as predicted from those tests and with high confidence. Most people (with the obvious exception of temporarily incapacitated ones due to a medical event) would take preventative measures such as slowing down, breaking or swerving and thereby lessen the impact, if any. Government interventions and quick responses and adaptations to changing circumstances work in a similar way, which is why worst-case scenarios almost never crystallise to become reality. Fortunately. This doesn’t make those models useless. Quite the contrary, they show if-then-or-else cases and outcomes and can guide appropriate actions to avoid shit hitting the fan and/or to minimise the fall-out and mess.

High vaccination levels, efficient contact tracing made easier by diligent scanning, and all the other easy preventative/protective measures are likely to avoid sharp sudden spikes in Covid-19 cases in New Zealand this summer. This will help keeping the community spread under control. However, there might be pockets (local communities) with lower vaccination levels where the virus might take hold and then fizzle out before it can grow into larger clusters and/or spread further into the community. In this scenario there might be a substantial increase in overall case numbers but only a gradual increase in severe cases that require hospitalisation or ICU. This is what’s been happening in some countries with high vaccination rates showing very slight and slow increases in the number of Covid-19 deaths. Of course, this still would put a considerable strain on the NZ health system and even low numbers of daily deaths are undesirable. Hopefully, New Zealand can and will do better in this respect – more Kiwis are likely to die on the roads based on current numbers for Covid-19 and road toll, which is another tragic statistic.

If/when you hit the road this summer please stay safe and think of others, so that we can count on rather than count each other, as nobody (!) wants to become just another number in the stats tables.

11 comments on “The pandemic response is like driving a car ”

  1. DukeEll 1

    Aucklands at 90% vaxxed. does the rest of the country think we can be cooped up forever while they stick their heads in the sand?

    • McFlock 1.1

      Not forever.

      I'm a bit worried that the talk of a vaccination "target" started as "90% plus" before lockdowns get stopped, then all 20 DHBs hitting that minimum, now it seems to be "near enough is good enough."

      Which is going to hit some communities quite hard. Which sucks.

      • DukeEll 1.1.1

        It might well suck for those communities, but the government has had a vaccine available for all who urgently needed it since may, and then for everyone since September.

        you have to ask what those communities have done in that time to help themselves to prepare for this inevitable day?

        • McFlock 1.1.1.1

          One should first possibly ask whether the vax levels in some sectors of the community simply reflects structural problems in access to primary healthcare that we have been ignoring for decades.

          Then one could also wonder whether this historical neglect has killed more people than covid ever will.

          But the "personal responsibility" argument always helps the sleep patterns of those who benefit from systemic inequity.

        • mpledger 1.1.1.2

          If Aucklanders had managed to obey the rules for 2 weeks then covid-19 would have been eliminated. So, yea, I think more than a few people outside of Auckland are pretty POed at the entitlement they Aucklanders feel to infect everyone else.

  2. Patricia Bremner 2

    I so relate. Our son has been working at home and recently has been locked down for weeks. He is driving over to see us tomorrow from Hamilton. We are anxious about the traffic. He is having dinner with good friends tonight. I thought "Have the kids been at school" It is easy to get into a panic. Keep safe everyone.

  3. Adrian 3

    Our road toll would be a lot less if it wasn’t for the “ clusters “, the crashes that happen to those who move in about large numbers in vans which have pretty dodgy safety ratings, are prone to side winds and less than optimal road holding.

  4. lprent 4

    Yeah, we're now in the iterative phase of pandemic development.

    The risks are acceptable with a high vaccination rate and everyone 12yo or old able to get it if they want to.

    Personally I'd prefer to wait for the kiddie shots to start so the vaccination choices by citizens get wider. But that is because I'm a project perfectionist and risk adverse about projects getting released into the wild. However the risk levels are now approaching reasonable from what we know from watching other countries screwing it up.

    This phase is to try things and see how they work at a governmental and personal level, pull back if the risk gets too high and the medical system starts hitting capacity. Then try something else. Keep doing it until we get everything working ok inside the country – then start opening up for unnecessary and risker luxuries like tourists, overseas students, work immigration, or kiwis taking flight again without constraints – and the imported diseases and variants they bring in with them.

    Because if we don't accept the risk of changing, we will get a permanent change in how we run our society and that may happen in parts. We'll have a better idea about that in the middle of winter next year when the cases really start rising again.

    The people who are hesitant about the vaccine or hard-core anti-vax will just have to accept a much higher risk – but in most cases (apart from the immunity compromised) that was their choice – and their own problem. Personally I wouldn't assign a higher medical priority level to them that blocks critical cases of people who have got vaccinated. Should be part of the triage – stupidity should be rewarded appropriately. But I was a army medic – that was how we were trained.

    The initial phase of dealing with this pandemic was the easy one. This bit is more tricky for each of us – we each have to access our own risks. However we are coming from close to the best starting position if any nation.

  5. Maurice 5

    At least with the unvaxxed locked away any real impact may well be on the vaxxed roaming free.

    Should the vaxxed in presently CovidFree(TM) areas begin to catch the bug we will then see how those bringing it down may replace the Anti-vaxxed as NOT flavour-of-the-month

    • lprent 5.1

      Should the vaxxed in presently CovidFree(TM) areas begin to catch the bug we will then see….

      Sure. And ultimately the alternative is ??

      Auckland becomes a separate state. International flights divert to Wellington and Christchurch – how is that going to work out?

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    As the National Party gets closer to government, lobbyists and business interests will be lining up for influence and to get policies adopted. It’s therefore in the public interest to have much more scrutiny and transparency about potential conflicts of interests that might arise. One of the key individuals of ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    5 days ago
  • Labour may be on way out of power and NZ First back in – but will Peters go into coalition with Na...
    Voters  are deserting Labour in droves, despite Chris  Hipkins’  valiant  rearguard  action.  So  where  are they  heading?  Clearly  not all of them are going to vote National, which concedes that  the  outcome  will be “close”. To the Right of National, the ACT party just a  few weeks  ago  was ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    5 days ago
  • GRAHAM ADAMS: Will the racists please stand up?
    Accusations of racism by journalists and MPs are being called out. Graham Adams writes –    With the election less than three weeks away, what co-governance means in practice — including in water management, education, planning law and local government — remains largely obscure. Which is hardly ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on whether Winston Peters can be a moderating influence
    As the centre-right has (finally!) been subjected to media interrogation, the polls are indicating that some voters may be starting to have second thoughts about the wisdom of giving National and ACT the power to govern alone. That’s why yesterday’s Newshub/Reid Research poll had the National/ACT combo dropping to 60 ...
    5 days ago
  • Tuesday’s Chorus: RBNZ set to rain on National's victory parade
    ANZ has increased its forecast for house inflation later this year on signs of growing momentum in the market ahead of the election. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: National has campaigned against the Labour Government’s record on inflation and mortgage rates, but there’s now a growing chance the Reserve ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • After a Pittsburgh coal processing plant closed, ER visits plummeted
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Katie Myers. This story was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. Pittsburgh, in its founding, was blessed and cursed with two abundant natural resources: free-flowing rivers and a nearby coal seam. ...
    5 days ago
  • September-23 AT Board Meeting
    Today the AT board meet again and once again I’ve taken a look at what’s on the agenda to find the most interesting items. Closed Agenda Interestingly when I first looked at the agendas this paper was there but at the time of writing this post it had been ...
    5 days ago
  • Electorate Watch: West Coast-Tasman
    Continuing my series on interesting electorates, today it’s West Coast-Tasman.A long thin electorate running down the northern half of the west coast of the South Island. Think sand flies, beautiful landscapes, lots of rain, Pike River, alternative lifestylers, whitebaiting, and the spiritual home of the Labour Party. A brief word ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Big money brings Winston back
    National leader Christopher Luxon yesterday morning conceded it and last night’s Newshub poll confirmed it; Winston Peters and NZ First are not only back but highly likely to be part of the next government. It is a remarkable comeback for a party that was tossed out of Parliament in ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • 20 days until Election Day, 7 until early voting begins… but what changes will we really see here?
    As this blogger, alongside many others, has already posited in another forum: we all know the National Party’s “budget” (meaning this concept of even adding up numbers properly is doing a lot of heavy, heavy lifting right now) is utter and complete bunk (read hung, drawn and quartered and ...
    exhALANtBy exhalantblog
    6 days ago
  • A night out
    Everyone was asking, Are you nervous? and my response was various forms of God, yes.I've written more speeches than I can count; not much surprises me when the speaker gets to their feet and the room goes quiet.But a play? Never.YOU CAME! THANK YOU! Read more ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • A pallid shade of Green III
    Clearly Labour's focus groups are telling it that it needs to pay more attention to climate change - because hot on the heels of their weaksauce energy efficiency pilot programme and not-great-but-better-than-nothing solar grants, they've released a full climate manifesto. Unfortunately, the core policies in it - a second Emissions ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago
  • A coalition of racism, cruelty, and chaos
    Today's big political news is that after months of wibbling, National's Chris Luxon has finally confirmed that he is willing to work with Winston Peters to become Prime Minister. Which is expected, but I guess it tells us something about which way the polls are going. Which raises the question: ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago
  • More migrant workers should help generate the tax income needed to provide benefits for job seekers
    Buzz from the Beehive Under something described as a “rebalance” of its immigration rules, the Government has adopted four of five recommendations made in an independent review released in July, The fifth, which called on the government to specify criteria for out-of-hours compliance visits similar to those used during ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Letter To Luxon.
    Some of you might know Gerard Otto (G), and his G News platform. This morning he wrote a letter to Christopher Luxon which I particularly enjoyed, and with his agreement I’m sharing it with you in this guest newsletter.If you’d like to make a contribution to support Gerard’s work you ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago
  • LINDSAY MITCHELL: Alarming trend in benefit numbers
    Lindsay Mitchell writes –  While there will not be another quarterly release of benefit numbers prior to the election, limited weekly reporting continues and is showing an alarming trend. Because there is a seasonal component to benefit number fluctuations it is crucial to compare like with like. In ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • BRIAN EASTON: Has there been external structural change?
    A close analysis of the Treasury assessment of the Medium Term in its PREFU 2023 suggests the economy may be entering a new phase.   Brian Easton writes –  Last week I explained that the forecasts in the just published Treasury Pre-election Economic and Fiscal Update (PREFU 2023) was ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • CRL Progress – Sep-23
    It’s been a while since we looked at the latest with the City Rail Link and there’s been some fantastic milestones recently. To start with, and most recently, CRL have released an awesome video showing a full fly-through of one of the tunnels. Come fly with us! You asked for ...
    6 days ago
  • Monday’s Chorus: Not building nearly enough
    We are heading into another period of fast population growth without matching increased home building or infrastructure investment.Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Labour and National detailed their house building and migration approaches over the weekend, with both pledging fast population growth policies without enough house building or infrastructure investment ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • Game on; Hipkins comes out punching
    Labour leader Chris Hipkins yesterday took the gloves off and laid into National and its leader Christopher Luxon. For many in Labour – and particularly for some at the top of the caucus and the party — it would not have been a moment too soon. POLITIK is aware ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    6 days ago
  • Tax Cut Austerity Blues.
    The leaders have had their go, they’ve told us the “what?” and the “why?” of their promises. Now it’s the turn of the would be Finance Ministers to tell us the “how?”, the “how much?”, and the “when?”A chance for those competing for the second most powerful job in the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • MIKE GRIMSHAW:  It’s the economy – and the spirit – Stupid…
    Mike Grimshaw writes – Over the past 30-odd years it’s become almost an orthodoxy to blame or invoke neoliberalism for the failures of New Zealand society. On the left the usual response goes something like, neoliberalism is the cause of everything that’s gone wrong and the answer ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 week ago

  • Safeguarding Tuvalu language and identity
    Tuvalu is in the spotlight this week as communities across New Zealand celebrate Vaiaso o te Gagana Tuvalu – Tuvalu Language Week. “The Government has a proven record of supporting Pacific communities and ensuring more of our languages are spoken, heard and celebrated,” Pacific Peoples Minister Barbara Edmonds said. “Many ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 hours ago
  • New community-level energy projects to support more than 800 Māori households
    Seven more innovative community-scale energy projects will receive government funding through the Māori and Public Housing Renewable Energy Fund to bring more affordable, locally generated clean energy to more than 800 Māori households, Energy and Resources Minister Dr Megan Woods says. “We’ve already funded 42 small-scale clean energy projects that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Huge boost to Te Tai Tokerau flood resilience
    The Government has approved new funding that will boost resilience and greatly reduce the risk of major flood damage across Te Tai Tokerau. Significant weather events this year caused severe flooding and damage across the region. The $8.9m will be used to provide some of the smaller communities and maraes ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Napier’s largest public housing development comes with solar
    The largest public housing development in Napier for many years has been recently completed and has the added benefit of innovative solar technology, thanks to Government programmes, says Housing Minister Dr Megan Woods. The 24 warm, dry homes are in Seddon Crescent, Marewa and Megan Woods says the whanau living ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Te Whānau a Apanui and the Crown initial Deed of Settlement I Kua waitohua e Te Whānau a Apanui me...
    Māori: Kua waitohua e Te Whānau a Apanui me te Karauna te Whakaaetanga Whakataunga Kua waitohua e Te Whānau a Apanui me te Karauna i tētahi Whakaaetanga Whakataunga hei whakamihi i ō rātou tāhuhu kerēme Tiriti o Waitangi. E tekau mā rua ngā hapū o roto mai o Te Whānau ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Plan for 3,000 more public homes by 2025 – regions set to benefit
    Regions around the country will get significant boosts of public housing in the next two years, as outlined in the latest public housing plan update, released by the Housing Minister, Dr Megan Woods. “We’re delivering the most public homes each year since the Nash government of the 1950s with one ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Immigration settings updates
    Judicial warrant process for out-of-hours compliance visits 2023/24 Recognised Seasonal Employer cap increased by 500 Additional roles for Construction and Infrastructure Sector Agreement More roles added to Green List Three-month extension for onshore Recovery Visa holders The Government has confirmed a number of updates to immigration settings as part of ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Poroporoaki: Tā Patrick (Patu) Wahanga Hohepa
    Tangi ngunguru ana ngā tai ki te wahapū o Hokianga Whakapau Karakia. Tārehu ana ngā pae maunga ki Te Puna o te Ao Marama. Korihi tangi ana ngā manu, kua hinga he kauri nui ki te Wao Nui o Tāne. He Toa. He Pou. He Ahorangi. E papaki tū ana ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Renewable energy fund to support community resilience
    40 solar energy systems on community buildings in regions affected by Cyclone Gabrielle and other severe weather events Virtual capability-building hub to support community organisations get projects off the ground Boost for community-level renewable energy projects across the country At least 40 community buildings used to support the emergency response ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • COVID-19 funding returned to Government
    The lifting of COVID-19 isolation and mask mandates in August has resulted in a return of almost $50m in savings and recovered contingencies, Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall announced today. Following the revocation of mandates and isolation, specialised COVID-19 telehealth and alternative isolation accommodation are among the operational elements ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Appointment of District Court Judge
    Susie Houghton of Auckland has been appointed as a new District Court Judge, to serve on the Family Court, Attorney-General David Parker said today.  Judge Houghton has acted as a lawyer for child for more than 20 years. She has acted on matters relating to the Hague Convention, an international ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Government invests further in Central Hawke’s Bay resilience
    The Government has today confirmed $2.5 million to fund a replace and upgrade a stopbank to protect the Waipawa Drinking Water Treatment Plant. “As a result of Cyclone Gabrielle, the original stopbank protecting the Waipawa Drinking Water Treatment Plant was destroyed. The plant was operational within 6 weeks of the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Govt boost for Hawke’s Bay cyclone waste clean-up
    Another $2.1 million to boost capacity to deal with waste left in Cyclone Gabrielle’s wake. Funds for Hastings District Council, Phoenix Contracting and Hog Fuel NZ to increase local waste-processing infrastructure. The Government is beefing up Hawke’s Bay’s Cyclone Gabrielle clean-up capacity with more support dealing with the massive amount ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Taupō Supercars revs up with Government support
    The future of Supercars events in New Zealand has been secured with new Government support. The Government is getting engines started through the Major Events Fund, a special fund to support high profile events in New Zealand that provide long-term economic, social and cultural benefits. “The Repco Supercars Championship is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • There is no recession in NZ, economy grows nearly 1 percent in June quarter
    The economy has turned a corner with confirmation today New Zealand never was in recession and stronger than expected growth in the June quarter, Finance Minister Grant Robertson said. “The New Zealand economy is doing better than expected,” Grant Robertson said. “It’s continuing to grow, with the latest figures showing ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Highest legal protection for New Zealand’s largest freshwater springs
    The Government has accepted the Environment Court’s recommendation to give special legal protection to New Zealand’s largest freshwater springs, Te Waikoropupū Springs (also known as Pupū Springs), Environment Minister David Parker announced today.   “Te Waikoropupū Springs, near Takaka in Golden Bay, have the second clearest water in New Zealand after ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • More support for victims of migrant exploitation
    Temporary package of funding for accommodation and essential living support for victims of migrant exploitation Exploited migrant workers able to apply for a further Migrant Exploitation Protection Visa (MEPV), giving people more time to find a job Free job search assistance to get people back into work Use of 90-day ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • Strong export boost as NZ economy turns corner
    An export boost is supporting New Zealand’s economy to grow, adding to signs that the economy has turned a corner and is on a stronger footing as we rebuild from Cyclone Gabrielle and lock in the benefits of multiple new trade deals, Finance Minister Grant Robertson says. “The economy is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • Funding approved for flood resilience work in Te Karaka
    The Government has approved $15 million to raise about 200 homes at risk of future flooding. More than half of this is expected to be spent in the Tairāwhiti settlement of Te Karaka, lifting about 100 homes there. “Te Karaka was badly hit during Cyclone Gabrielle when the Waipāoa River ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • Further business support for cyclone-affected regions
    The Government is helping businesses recover from Cyclone Gabrielle and attract more people back into their regions. “Cyclone Gabrielle has caused considerable damage across North Island regions with impacts continuing to be felt by businesses and communities,” Economic Development Minister Barbara Edmonds said. “Building on our earlier business support, this ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • New maintenance facility at Burnham Military Camp underway
    Defence Minister Andrew Little has turned the first sod to start construction of a new Maintenance Support Facility (MSF) at Burnham Military Camp today. “This new state-of-art facility replaces Second World War-era buildings and will enable our Defence Force to better maintain and repair equipment,” Andrew Little said. “This Government ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • Foreign Minister to attend United Nations General Assembly
    Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta will represent New Zealand at the 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York this week, before visiting Washington DC for further Pacific focussed meetings. Nanaia Mahuta will be in New York from Wednesday 20 September, and will participate in UNGA leaders ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • Midwives’ pay equity offer reached
    Around 1,700 Te Whatu Ora employed midwives and maternity care assistants will soon vote on a proposed pay equity settlement agreed by Te Whatu Ora, the Midwifery Employee Representation and Advisory Service (MERAS) and New Zealand Nurses Association (NZNO), Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall announced today. “Addressing historical pay ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • New Zealand provides support to Morocco
    Aotearoa New Zealand will provide humanitarian support to those affected by last week’s earthquake in Morocco, Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta announced today. “We are making a contribution of $1 million to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) to help meet humanitarian needs,” Nanaia Mahuta said. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • Government invests in West Coast’s roading resilience
    The Government is investing over $22 million across 18 projects to improve the resilience of roads in the West Coast that have been affected by recent extreme weather, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins confirmed today.  A dedicated Transport Resilience Fund has been established for early preventative works to protect the state ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • Government invests in Greymouth’s future
    The Government has today confirmed a $2 million grant towards the regeneration of Greymouth’s CBD with construction of a new two-level commercial and public facility. “It will include a visitor facility centred around a new library. Additionally, it will include retail outlets on the ground floor, and both outdoor and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 weeks ago
  • Nanaia Mahuta to attend PIF Foreign Ministers’ Meeting
    Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta will attend the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, in Suva, Fiji alongside New Zealand’s regional counterparts. “Aotearoa New Zealand is deeply committed to working with our pacific whanau to strengthen our cooperation, and share ways to combat the challenges facing the Blue Pacific Continent,” ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 weeks ago
  • PREFU shows no recession, growing economy, more jobs and wages ahead of inflation
    Economy to grow 2.6 percent on average over forecast period Treasury not forecasting a recession Inflation to return to the 1-3 percent target band next year Wages set to grow 4.8 percent a year over forecast period Unemployment to peak below the long-term average Fiscal Rules met - Net debt ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 weeks ago
  • New cancer centre opens in Christchurch
    Prime Minister Chris Hipkins and Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall proudly opened the Canterbury Cancer Centre in Christchurch today. The new facility is the first of its kind and was built with $6.5 million of funding from the Government’s Infrastructure Reference Group scheme for shovel-ready projects allocated in 2020. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 weeks ago

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