Jacinda Ardern and the New Zealand cabinet take coronavirus pay cuts



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“We recognize New Zealanders who depend on wage subsidies, wage cuts, and the loss of their jobs as a result of the global Covid-19 pandemic,” Ardern said at a press conference Wednesday. “Today I can confirm that I, government ministers and executive heads of public service will receive a 20% pay cut over the next six months.”

He added that the salary cut will not affect his government’s fiscal policies, but he intends to show the leadership his cabinet has taken.

New Zealand has been praised for its response to the outbreak. Ardern closed the country’s borders to foreign visitors on March 19 and announced a four-week shutdown on March 23, requiring all nonessential workers to stay home, except to buy food or exercise nearby.
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The country carried out widespread tests and registered 1,386 cases of coronavirus and nine deaths, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University.
But Ardern said last week that he was tightening border restrictions, meaning that all New Zealanders arriving in the country will have to spend two weeks in quarantine at an approved facility, rather than isolating themselves at home.

New Zealand is halfway through its close and has said it will not end sooner.

“In the face of the greatest threat to human health we have seen in more than a century, the Kiwis have quietly and collectively implemented a defense wall across the country,” Ardern said in a speech to the nation last Thursday.

“They made the decision that together we could protect each other. And they have. They have saved lives.”

“But like I said, this is going to be a marathon.”

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