Covirus 19 coronavirus: Jacinda Ardern announces funeral review, ‘Job Budget’

Strict level 2 rules for funerals, including a 10-person limit, are being urgently revised in the face of public criticism from government and health officials.

The review occurs when the country registers zero new Covid cases for the second consecutive day.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced that the planned funeral rules take effect when Level 2 officially begins at 11:59 p.m. Tonight, they were reviewed today by the Ministry of Health, with the help of funeral directors and church leaders.

She did not say what the new rules would look like, but it appears that the maximum capacity for the number of funeral attendees is likely to be raised. An announcement from the Minister of Health is expected later today.

Ardern has been under fire from grieving families and the National Party in recent days.

National leader Simon Bridges described the funeral rules as “inhumane,” questioning how the 10-person limit can be reconciled with a 100-person limit for theaters.

Ardern’s comments came when she and Health Chief Ashley Bloomfield gave their final update during Alert Level 3.

The “encouraging news” of zero cases meant that the country had 1,497 confirmed or probable cases combined. Ninety-four percent were recovered, Bloomfield said.

There are only 74 active cases.

Two people remained in the hospital, or in the ICU. There were 5961 tests yesterday.

“We have reached the milestone of more than 200,000 tests, representing just over 4 percent of the population and a significant achievement,” said Bloomfield.

He said the sense of anticipation for level 2 was palpable and understandable.

He reiterated the golden rules:

• Keep your distance from other people when you are in public, even on transport.

• If you are sick, stay home. Don’t go to work or school. Do not socialize

• If you have cold or flu symptoms, call your doctor or Healthline right away and get tested.

• Good hand hygiene will continue to be the simplest and most effective tool we have to keep Covid-19 at bay.

• Hold your social gatherings with a maximum of 10 people at a time.

• Keep track of where you have been and who you have seen to help with contact tracking if we need it.

Bloomfield said the numbers again showed “we are on the right track” and that we couldn’t afford to hand over our earnings, so we had to be vigilant.

Tonight at 11.59 p.m., New Zealand will go to alert level 2.

READ MORE:
• Covid 19 coronavirus: Jacinda Ardern in level 2 alert plans and latest case numbers
• Coronavirus Covid 19: How the vaccine can be made in New Zealand
• Covid 19 Coronavirus: Traveler with positive virus imprisoned after refusing medical examination
• Covirus 19 coronavirus: Tier 2 winners and losers revealed; Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern talks about the “hardest” part of the crisis

Announcement on funerals and tangi

Ardern said that “the most difficult parts” of the alert level framework were funerals and tangi.

There is a limit of 10 people below alert level 2.

But he has instigated calls among church leaders, funeral directors, and iwi leaders to see if they can find a way to address legitimate health concerns while acknowledging that funerals and tangi are life events that cannot be postpone.

They were “on the way” to find a solution and the Minister of Health would have more information on that this afternoon, before the country changes its alert level.

The government was still working on the details. Ardern said they had always been agile and recognized the difficult times kiwis were going through. She urged that “there will still be restrictions.”

They were looking to see if there would be “checks and balances,” involving funeral directors and the Ministry of Health.

There were other areas in his response that changed after the consultation “and I don’t shy away from that.”

He accepted that there had been consequences of the restrictions: he has had friends who had funerals and tangi during the blockade and alert level 3.

“But ultimately, we have always said that we would like to solve the problems that arose.”

But New Zealand would have to exercise caution because “we are not yet out of the woods yet.”

Bloomfield said consistency around public health councils was based on group size and purpose of the meeting, especially where they would mix and mingle.

The public health council focused on balancing health risks, but was committed and listened to specific concerns about funerals and tangi.

Ardern said no one wanted to see the funerals broken down by the police, but law enforcement ultimately depended on the police.

“I don’t think anyone in New Zealand wants to see a scene like that.”

Ardern said social gatherings had the highest risk factors and that countries were now having a second wave that she called “a warning shot for us.”

This morning, relatives of a young butcher who died suddenly over the weekend made a heartfelt plea to the Prime Minister to allow them to attend his funeral.

Roy Green, 38, died over the weekend after his business went into liquidation a week ago.

One of Green’s cousins, Bianca Rhind, sent a letter to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern asking her to relax the rules and allow more than 10 people to attend her loved one’s funeral.

Hairdressing

The Health Ministry has told hairdressers that the most important item in PPE was a mask, if they wanted to wear it.

Bloomfield said New Zealand’s situation was different from most other countries where restrictions were being relaxed due to our low Covid-19 levels.

And it depended on hairdressers and other practical sectors if they used PPE.

Party plans

Viaduct bar owner Leo Molloy confirmed this week that he still planned to throw a party with 100 of his “friends” during the first Level 2 weekend.

When asked about it at the press conference, Ardern said New Zealand would act under Anzac this weekend and that there could be no groups of more than 10.

I wasn’t sure what relationship Molloy had with the police.

Ardern said the Covid-19 bill allowed police to enforce the rules, but in a more restricted way than under a state of emergency.

Powers would be done in orders that could be quite narrow.

Ardern was also asked about the leader of the Church of Destiny, Brian Tamaki, with the intention of holding a religious service this weekend. You should listen to the health advice, she said.

Animals

Bloomfield said dogs can get together and that it is safe to pet dogs at alert level 2.

Hospital review

Bloomfield said it had received a copy of Waitematā DHB’s review of the experience surrounding infections from Covid-19 staff at Waitakere Hospital and St Margaret’s group.

“It is a very good example of a quick and transparent review of our response to Covid-19 in a very unique setting. We can learn and then translate those lessons into our national advice so that all DHBs can benefit.”

The four-person review panel included a representative from the New Zealand Nurses Organization, the Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer of Waikato DHB and senior executives from Waitematā DHB.

Waitematā DHB will release the report at 2 p.m. from today.

Migrant workers

According to the official Cabinet advice published in the document dump on Friday, there are potentially 380,000 foreigners and migrant workers in New Zealand.

The council said “the repatriation of foreign nationals on such a scale is unlikely to be possible” and that they would have to take refuge in New Zealand.

Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters said yesterday that Civil Defense had “done everything possible” to help them.

“But with that said, if you’re here without long-term legal authority or the right to be here, then perhaps you should go home.”

Ardern said they would need a longer-term framework for migrant workers, but said he did not want to get ahead of any decision-making.

When asked about Peters’ comments, he said that, in his opinion, many foreigners would not have had the opportunity to get home, so the government had a compassionate response.

Ardern acknowledged that as New Zealand abandoned the emergency response, that group of people would need a more personalized response.

The gap had been closed for now, but would need a longer-term response, he said.

He rejected that the Government had not supported people in need.

Ardern said they provided tens of millions to make sure needs were met, including accommodation and food.

When asked about China blocking Australia’s meat exports, Ardern said New Zealand had its own relationship with China, independent of Australia,

A ‘labor budget’

Ardern said tomorrow’s Budget will be an “Employment Budget”, noting how the government intends to tackle the virus economically.

“Our number one priority is jobs … That means doing everything possible to support people who remain in their current job or move to a new job if necessary.

“And the reason for this is simple. It goes back to the feeling of Norman Kirk, that all someone needs is something to do, a place to live, someone to love and something to look forward to. Employment helps build a It supports families, pays the bills, helps provide self-worth and worth, and when times are tough, these workplaces can provide an important network of support. “

He said he would not anticipate anything that Finance Minister Grant Robertson has to say tomorrow, but he could expose what the government was trying to achieve and the values ​​to make it work.

The government’s plan was to invest.

“The first thing you will notice is that we believe that when times are tough, you don’t cut back, you invest.

“We will enforce the rule on every spending line, we certainly need to make sure that our spending provides value for money and supports our primary employment objective.”

The notion that the government would cut essential services that New Zealanders needed more than ever was “not only immoral, it is economically incorrect.”

So yesterday the largest investment in health funds was made in two decades.

“That’s why on Monday we delivered pay equity for early childhood teachers. That’s why one of the first things we did when the virus occurred was to increase benefit rates to ensure that those who lost their jobs had more to help them.

“Now more than ever we need our schools and hospitals, our public houses and roads and railways. We need our police and our nurses, and we need our social safety net. We will not drop our team of 5 million when the difficult time comes, in Instead, we will strengthen the general support that the Government can provide.We are rebuilding together, not separately.

“These foundations are essential. They are off-base. But upon them we must build the things that accelerate employment, empower businesses, and stimulate our productive economy. A relentless focus on jobs, the economy, and business is what is now requires for the well-being of all New Zealanders. “

In the next month, the Government will also launch a “comprehensive participation program” that will present a simple proposal: look at what our team of 5 million achieved together to beat the virus, now what can we do together to get our economy moving again, to take care of our people and rebuild in a way that improves things from what they were before.

“Of course, that will include the business community, but it will also be broader.”

“Before the virus, we faced serious long-term challenges: persistent inequality and poverty, the threat of climate change, the need to diversify the economy, low productivity, limited domestic manufacturing, and an abundance of low-paying jobs. Are we going back to those environments? O now is the time to find a better way? “

New Zealand to enter “a very hard winter”.

Ardern said the Budget “will be delivered within the most challenging economic conditions facing any government since the Great Depression.”

“The global Covid-19 pandemic has triggered a global economic shock not of our creation, but like all countries in the world, we are also not immune to its consequences.”

“Let me be clear, the coming months and years will be some of the most difficult that our country has faced in a long, long time.”

She said the International Monetary Fund predicts that the global economy will contract 3 percent in 2020, much worse than during the global financial crisis.

Around the world, unemployment will rise significantly, businesses will close, and government revenues will decline.

“And we will also feel the pain here. New Zealand is about to enter a very harsh winter.”

“But every winter is followed by spring, and if we make the right decisions, we can get New Zealanders back to work and our economy moving quickly again.”