Morning Briefing March 25: Govt reveals who can jump the vaccine queue

The jab requires only one shot and can be stored in regular fridges.

The Government reveals the criteria for jumping the queue for a Covid jab, the housing debate continues to rage, and Westpac says it's considering selling its NZ business.

As New Zealand marks one year since the entire country went into a Level 4 lockdown to contain the spread of Covid-19, health officials continue to juggle the process of vaccinating the population against the deadly virus. 

Applications to skip that Covid-19 vaccine queue will open next week after the Government yesterday revealed new criteria for allowing some Kiwis to be vaccinated early.

That criteria includes people who are travelling overseas for events of “national significance” like the Olympics or on compassionate grounds, such as accessing critical medical care or visiting an immediate family member who’s dying.

Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins says “a very high threshold has been set” for applying for an early vaccine, which doesn’t include attending a funeral or memorial service overseas. 

The New Zealand Olympic Committee says it’s grateful Olympians due to compete in Tokyo in July will be eligible for early vaccinations. New Zealand took nearly 200 athletes to the 2016 Rio Olympics and it’s expected a similar number will travel for this year’s Games. 

Sign up to get the Morning Briefing delivered direct to your inbox – here.

Millions poured into upgrading hotels

Taxpayers are forking out millions of dollars to upgrade the 32 hotels and motels being used for managed isolation.

The hotels weren't designed to be isolation facilities and figures obtained under the Official Information Act show upgrading them will likely cost around $6.5 million. The money has been spent on things like CCTV installation, door alarms, and air filtration systems.

Chris Hipkins says the expenditure is a “very, very large” sum but still “good value for money”.

Meanwhile, Kiwis returning to New Zealand will soon need to stay in the country for at least 180 days to be exempt from paying managed isolation costs.

At the moment, the requirement is set at 90 days, but that will double from June. Waivers can still be granted for financial hardship and other special circumstances.

And officials are continuing to monitor the new border-related case of Covid-19 this week.

No new community cases were reported yesterday, after a family member of the infected hotel employee returned a negative result in follow-up testing .

The Mt Roskill Countdown is still the only location of interest related to the case. Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield says there were some other places, including a kindergarten , the case visited while potentially infectious, but these aren’t classified as locations of interest. 

Westpac looking to sell NZ arm

Westpac is considering selling its New Zealand business after the Reserve Bank asked it to review its risk governance practices.

Two reviews of Westpac New Zealand were ordered by the Reserve Bank after finding it breached liquidity requirements between 2012 and 2020.

The Australian-owned bank is considering a demerger but no assessments have been made. 

Westpac currently makes up 20 per cent of New Zealand’s banking market and has been involved in the country for around 160 years. 

Housing debate rages

The Government’s new range of housing measures continued to stoke fierce debate yesterday. 

ACT leader David Seymour took aim at the bright-line test with a petition to scrap it , while National’s Judith Collins called the housing package a "cheap swipe at landlords" that will mean fewer houses built or being available for rentals.

She also says she’s written to Jacinda Ardern requesting that emergency legislation be drawn up to address the housing crisis in Auckland.

But that crisis appears to extend beyond big city borders. Ōpōtiki in the eastern Bay of Plenty has a population of around 10,000 but has only a few houses for sale and not many more for rent.

The town’s mayor, Lyn Riesterer, says houses are overcrowded and people are living in cars and tents. She says the Government must “build houses now”

Meanwhile, an Auckland marae that’s been caring for the city’s homeless is taking the Crown to the Waitangi Tribunal for its failures to house Māori .

Te Puea Marae is leading the claim as it asks for reparations from the Crown for its past failures and a commitment to do more for future generations.

The claim is being supported by several community groups working with Māori.

Whanau Ora CEO John Tamihere says housing is a key issue. He says one third of the Māori population is on the move every three years and the issue of settling whānau needs to be a priority. 

New leave for grieving parents

Parliament has unanimously passed legislation giving mothers and their partners three days of bereavement leave following a miscarriage or stillbirth.

Hutt South MP Ginny Andersen introduced the bill and says it acknowledges the need for a grieving period for the one in four women who have had a miscarriage.

New Zealand is just the second country in the world to pass such legislation.

Other news of note this morning:

- A new and potentially troublesome “double mutant” variant of Covid-19 has been detected in India.

- As New Zealand’s spy chief says "white identity extremism” makes up half their counter-terrorism work , one expert says the threat of young people being inclined to join extremist groups is "very real" .

- National Party leader Judith Collins is accusing the Speaker of acting "as a bully" and has written to the Prime Minister, calling on her to remove Trevor Mallard from the role.

- The ODT reports Dunedin Hospital is no longer at capacity following a declaration of a "code black" yesterday.

- A migrant workers association says it's concerned about the welfare of 10 Chinese men who face deportation after a sting by immigration officials on an Auckland construction site.

- One of the world’s most important shipping routes has been blocked by a disastrous parking job .

- Hamish Bond and Eric Murray were the big winners at last night's Halberg Awards celebrating sport's top athletes of the decade .

- And the Queen's granddaughter Zara Tindall and her husband Mike Tindall have welcomed their third baby, who was born at home on the bathroom floor when the couple couldn’t get to the hospital in time.

And finally...

Never mind giving birth on the bathroom floor - imagine having four new babies at the age of 50.

That’s what’s happened to Auckland Zoo’s Galapagos tortoises, 50-year-old Chippie and 49-year-old Smiley, who have just welcomed four offspring .

The endangered animals are famously difficult to breed and care for, but the zoo is cautiously optimistic about their new clutch of tortoises.

The babies weigh in at around 100 grams but could eventually top 250 kilograms – and could live for more than 180 years. 

SHARE ME

More Stories