This Labour Government, right from the outset, has shown itself to be pig-ignorant when it comes to private enterprise. Their members are union-friendly (beholden) and business-antagonistic.
Nothing illustrates their attitude better than Covid. They effectively left the tourism and hospitality industries to bleed to death.
Their complete lack of understanding of how a business operates was laid bare for all to see.
A paltry wage subsidy payment was never going to be enough. No doubt it went some way to calling off the barking from the union dogs but it did nothing to help the business owners.
Labour seemed unaware of the monthly outgoings a business incurs such as rent, rates and insurance. Many owners have mortgaged their homes either to start their business or to keep it afloat during the pandemic. The government assistance for owners was, in many cases, too little too late. As a result, thousands upon thousands have had to close their doors.
Labour’s poor attitude towards business has many examples, the most recent being the Ute tax that came into force on April 1. Unlike Cam professing to join the Labour Party, this was not a joke. This is a tax on the vehicle most commonly used by tradies, farmers and others in business. Having failed in their idea of banning them, the government is now trying to tax them out of existence. The government has been told by both industry and consumers that the tax won’t work. Treasury’s analysis says it will do little to lower emissions. It’s a tax rammed through for purely ideological reasons and will increase costs during a cost of living crisis.
Ideology rears its ugly head again with the government’s idea of making the use of biofuels compulsory. MBIE has warned the government that this will increase the price at the pump by 5 to 10 cents a litre. This is deemed to be a pointless exercise in trying to reduce emissions while we have an Emissions Trading Scheme in place. The government wants to up the penalty for companies failing to meet their biofuels targets from $300 per tonne to $800 per tonne. More cost increases during a cost of living crisis.
The building industry was another to suffer, and still is, at the hands of this government. Locked down for far longer than needed and reopening with far too many restrictions, the industry lost nearly two years of house builds. As Christie pointed out in a recent article, not classing Winstones, this country’s only producer of wallboard, as an essential industry was disastrous. Waiting times have increased immeasurably for wallboard, as has the price. The construction industry took an unnecessary hammering. More cost increases during a cost of living crisis.
Hospitality and tourism have also been under undue restrictions for far too long. They have suffered a double whammy of an indoctrinated fear of dining out and participating in activities at a domestic level and closed borders at an international level. The effects that the restrictions were having on these businesses were not comprehended by the government until far too late and the assistance offered far too little.
Was the government responsible for any of this? According to them, certainly not. They have done nothing wrong in their entire time in office. Apparently, their actions saved up to 5,000 lives. I have met people who have actually fallen for Ardern’s spin. All the government has ever done is try its best to protect the fanciful ‘team of five million’ Ardern claims.
From the left-wing World Health Organisation, across all left-wing governments, Covid has been a means to try and manipulate the people for their own political gain.
It was an experiment to see how far they could take their political idealism before people would react.
From the start it has been all about the politics of opportunism and not about health. The drug companies also jumped on the bandwagon of opportunity. First it was two doses, then a booster and now a second booster. Excuse my cynicism but I’ve had enough of the Covid Circus.
Businesses have paid a hefty price even if the hypothetical figure of 5,000 lives were saved. The country likewise; and those paying the price long term will be the younger generations.
She is not our saviour. She is a poll-driven tyrant.
More deaths are being recorded, with or of Covid, but with her popularity heading south she is now loosening the rules. How very convenient, but like everything else with this government, it’s too late as the damage has already been done.
Countries such as New Zealand, living under left-wing regimes, will be left behind in the recovery compared to right-wing countries and states such as Florida, which didn’t institute draconian lockdowns and regulations. They fared much the same as far as the effects of Covid were concerned but now find themselves in a much stronger financial position.
If we ever see another virus, we cannot afford to again commit financial suicide by instigating more lockdowns. They have to be a thing of the past. The only advice should be, ‘If you feel unwell stay home.’
Those who choose to ignore that will also ignore a lockdown, as was proven in level four when on average up to 200 cars passed my rural abode every 30 minutes. It’s a harsh reality but, on balance, when it comes to health, the country must take precedence: measures put in place for the health of the population must be realistic.
The results of the policies of left-wing and right-wing governments during Covid prove that lockdowns don’t work. They only serve to put the country on a path to financial ruin.