Covid 19 coronavirus: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern defends isolation voucher system

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern defends the extended managed isolation voucher system and has asked people who no longer plan to return home to hand their vouchers to other travelers.

Ardern said there have been stories of people failing to secure a managed isolation and quarantine (MIQ) facility reserve before Christmas.

He said it was “completely understandable” that the Kiwis wanted to come home for Christmas.

But he said the government could not simply open up new spaces.

He said the MIQ system was already stretched.

Ardern asked that anyone with an MIQ voucher who would not use it over Christmas to report it to officials so that space could be freed up.

He encouraged people abroad who might have been lost to keep checking.

“This is a great company.”

Once New Zealand has passed the busy period, supply and demand would be more even.

Ardern said there was no “unlimited capacity” in New Zealand. Police and Defense Forces personnel were required: there are 4,000 people working throughout the system.

“This is a finely balanced system,” he said, warning against depletion of resources.

That would bring more risk, he said.

New Zealand was well placed compared to other countries, he said.

“New Zealand is a great place to be right now.”

Ardern said New Zealanders were using a variety of airlines to get home and more work was being done to link officials with airlines.

Ardern also said that talks were progressing on a travel bubble with the Cook Islands and that New Zealand officials would visit the area on November 14.

However, there was no deadline for an announcement.

Officials would have to report to Cabinet before anything gets going.

Everything that was done would be done with the safety of New Zealanders in mind, he said.

There are four new Covid-19 cases to report today, all imported cases in managed isolation facilities and no more community cases.

A person who was a casual contact of a positive case on a flight from Auckland to Wellington had started to feel ill and was awaiting test results. It was reported late this afternoon that the person had tested negative.

Ardern said it “should be a given” that quarantine facility workers wore a mask while using transport.

The roles of those workers were a “thankless task” and she didn’t want to be seen criticizing her.

He said he still wore a mask on airplanes at alert level 1 and encouraged others to do so as well.

There was no order for people to wear a mask on public transportation, but she continued to encourage its use.

Prime Minister on the result of the US elections

On Donald Trump, Ardern said it was important to respect America’s democratic institutions and that people in the race had to choose when to give in.

But he noted that he had already congratulated President-elect Joe Biden.

On Saturday he congratulated Biden and his deputy Kamala Harris on their election victory, in addition to recognizing outgoing President Trump.

“New Zealand has enjoyed positive and cooperative relations with the United States during the Trump Administration, especially in the Indo-Pacific and Pacific Islands regions.”

Ardern said today that it is up to the people of the United States to make their own judgments.

He hadn’t spoken to Biden yet, but he hadn’t expected to speak to him so soon.

But he would be looking to pass on his congratulations as soon as possible.

If Biden were to restore America’s membership in the Paris climate agreement, this would be good for international common ground.

Government help for small businesses

Finance Minister Grant Robertson says 100,000 businesses have accepted a loan grant so far – the average is $ 17,000 per business.

The government had made changes to this scheme, he told reporters today.

He said he would support small businesses with access to finance.

The updated scheme has been extended for three years; it was due to expire at the end of this year.

The period without interest has also been extended, from one year to two years without interest.

And the government has expanded what the loan money can be spent on.

Speaking to a business audience last week, the Prime Minister said the expansion of the small business loan scheme and the launch of the flexible wage subsidy program were high on the government’s to-do list before Christmas.

Both were Labor pre-election policies.

The small business loan scheme has been adopted by more than a quarter of New Zealand businesses.

It entitles eligible businesses to a loan of $ 10,000, plus an additional $ 1,800 per full-time employee. The loan is interest free if it is paid back within a year, and 3 percent per year every year thereafter.

Applications for this scheme were due to close on December 31 this year, but Labor had promised to extend it for another three years.