Covid 19 coronavirus: keeping Auckland at the correct ‘level 2.5’, says Goff, businesses are concerned

Mayor Phil Goff says the government’s decision to keep Auckland at a Covid-19 alert level 2.5 is the right one and is asking city residents to continue to play their role in enforcing the rules.

Auckland city center and hotel business groups have also recognized the need to protect people’s health, but say the additional 10 days under tight restrictions will affect already struggling shops, restaurants and bars.

They hope the government can now set improved guidelines on how New Zealand will respond to future outbreaks that will allow companies to better plan for trade disruptions.

Goff is urging Auckland residents to stay the course.

“Auckland people can be proud of the success we have had so far in limiting the second Covid-19 outbreak, and I appreciate the sacrifices they have made to achieve this,” he said.

“But it is crucial that we stay the course. While we are all looking forward to reaching level 1, the last thing we want is to move too soon and risk a further resurgence of the virus.”

“That would be the worst result.”

Goff said an early relaxation of restrictions would not only jeopardize the health and safety of Auckland residents, including some of the most vulnerable, but would also further harm businesses and the economy.

“I urge everyone to follow the rules: wear a mask when on public transportation and in other situations where physical distancing is difficult, keep up with good hygiene practices like hand washing, and track your movements with the NZ Covid Tracer app “.

“Doing so will keep you and others safe, and it will help us get back to Tier 1, with the added freedoms and business resumption that comes with it.”

Marisa Bidois, Executive Director of the Restaurant Association, said the hospitality industry was disappointed with 10 more days at the so-called 2.5 level, but was waiting for it.

Auckland restaurants had been trading for the past few weeks with Level 3 restrictions on 60% less revenue.

“It has improved a bit now that Auckland has moved to 2.5, but on average for the entire country, revenues are down 35 to 40 percent,” Bidois said.

She said the restaurants had recovered strongly after the first closure.

“It took us a bit of time to gain momentum, but in July we were seeing some very solid numbers,” he said.

“It was almost up to where we were at the same time last year in July, and some people were even trading above average for that time of year.”

“There was a strong rebound that came after school holidays, where people were traveling and spending a little bit of money in the country.”

However, the return to the confinement had put a significant brake on that good news and the restaurants were once again with their backs against the wall.

Bidois said his association will meet with the government’s Treasury Department next week in hopes of negotiating specific assistance for the sector.

“Despite contributing more than $ 11 billion to the economy and employing more than 133,000 people across the country, there has been no specific support for the industry through the pandemic to date,” the association said in a recent press release.

It calls on the government to adopt its Dine out to help out plan, based on a UK initiative.

In the UK, the government pays 50 per cent of a customer’s bill for any food eaten in a cafe, restaurant or pub between Monday and Wednesday until the end of August.

Viv Beck of Heart of the City, who represents businesses in Auckland’s interior, said that inner-city businesses understood the need to take care of people’s health but were concerned about the new restrictions.

“The reality is that an extended period in a restricted business environment has a huge impact on businesses,” said Beck.

Beck said business had recovered amid the positive atmosphere after the first successful lockdown, but was hit hard by the suddenness of the recent lockdown in which Auckland went from alert level 1 to strict restrictions at noon the next day.

For businesses, such as restaurants, which had been increasing their stocks to cope with increased demand in July, it meant that a lot of perishable food was wasted.

Beck would like the government to learn from his experiences to adjust the edge clamp on Covid-19 and improve the speed and efficiency of his contact tracing.

Lockdowns should be treated as a last resort rather than getting in and out of them, he said.