hamistheman:

 

Stu: I agree with the sentiment of many/most/(hopefully all) here. Why not make it mandatory to scan/record entry at all essential locations (supermarkets, medical, etc) right now, and as we move down Alert Levels start making everywhere else compulsory? Just do it.

 

 

 

In the press conference, Hipkins said they were reviewing the penalties as well, which would require a law change. I'm not sure that retail is exempted in the change, I can't find a source for that - I'm hoping that its just that its exempted till the alert levels change - the rule doesn't come into force until alert levels change. I agree it should come in straight away, but depends on the actual wording of the order - if you have to have someone at the entrance confirming it, then that could take some time to setup for businesses. 

 

On a related note, I'd like to see that once you've signed in on the app the LED light flashes a certain colour (changeable by the business each day [for say 5 mins]) so that its easy enough to confirm - yes it can be faked, but alot quicker than trying to read that the person has actually signed in on the app and not just showing a photo of a random sign in. 

 

Was also interesting to hear in the media conference that Apple and Google wouldn't accept mandatory QR scanning as the only way to access businesses ....[has to be an alternative].

 

original announcement :  https://covid19.govt.nz/alert-levels-and-updates/latest-updates/record-keeping-to-become-mandatory-for-most-events-and-businesses/ 

Below is an extract from ... https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/126148560/covid-19-scanning-or-signing-in-to-become-mandatory-at-cafes-busy-venues-and-events-at-all-alert-levels (Personally i think that retail should be included)

The change will come into effect seven days after any alert level changes that allow more businesses to open. But the extent of the new policy is still unclear – officials are understood to still be working on exactly what sort of businesses will have to comply.

At this stage it is envisaged that supermarkets and diaries will be excluded on grounds of practicality, but venues where wearing a mask is impractical – such as bars and restaurants will be covered.

“A mandatory record keeping requirement for the retail sector was considered, but ultimately we agreed that the compliance burden for small businesses would be too onerous. We do encourage all businesses to promote use of QR codes and record keeping as much as possible,” Hipkins said.

“Our priority for mandatory record keeping is locations where mask wearing isn’t practical, for example where food and drink as being consumed, and where people gather in larger numbers. Experience here and abroad shows that these are the settings that prove the greatest challenge for contact tracers,” he said.