Lockdown: The new normal (for Auckland at least)

As the work day drew to a close, on an overcast mid-winter Friday afternoon across New Zealand, the country held its breath to learn the fate of whether it would enter its second national lockdown, following a sudden cluster of new Covid-19 cases. As compared with back home in the UK, here in NZ with a significantly smaller population and as its response to Covid has proven, a more compliant nation, you really do get a feeling of being very small and susceptible to any change during this pandemic. 

So as Jacinda Ardern, the countrys unflappable leader and Dr Ashley Bloomfield, who has been running what is affectionately known among kiwis, as "The Dr Ashley Show", stepped up to their respective podiums to announce a 12 day extension of lockdown in Auckland, but that the rest of the country would remain at Level 2 - there was a collective sigh of relief shared among kiwis outside of Auckland. Walking home from my work along the cool Wellington waterfront, I could really sense this as New Zealanders set their sights on a lockdown-free weekend. 

The people of New Zealand have, following strong leadership in response to the pandemic, dealt with the new Covid outbreak as before, with an overriding sensibility and with well-natured humour: A “Covid free bag of air” has hit $80,000 in Trade Me bids. 

As the UK's economic implosion has proven as a warning to the rest of the world, another lockdown is most certainly not what this small nation needs and would definitely have significant ramifications for its economy and job market. Whilst Kiwis have dealt with the outbreak much in the same way as before, when I mentioned how refreshing this was to a friend, she reminded me of the huge swathes of kiwis pouring out of Auckland to their respective 'Bachs' (holiday homes), outside of the city to prove that 'people will be people' whether here or anywhere else during these unprecedented times. Meanwhile the nation rushes to buy face-masks, which have become the new hand sanisiter, as the most precious commodity there is. 

With regard to the prospect of a second lockdown, with NZ having no international tourists coming in it has already hit the tourism industry hard with the well-documented affects on areas such as Queenstown and even to a lesser extent where I live Wellington, which is a year-round favourite city to live and work for backpackers. With the inquest now in full flow over the discovery that NZ's outbreak could likely have spread via food packaging from a Melbourne coolstore, it just goes to show that despite how remote this nation is, new Covid cases will find their way in to the country one way or another. The challenge for NZ's leadership now, will be planning how to manage this, without the continued looming threat of further national lockdowns creating huge anxiety for the owners of small and medium-sized businesses, that make this country what it is.