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JaseNZ:
There will be real panic buying now, you thought it was bad before it will get worse yet.
you are not kidding, people are blocking the road in Rotorua trying to get into New World im sure the PM said dont panic buy, no one listens.
Common sense is not as common as you think.
I would hope the police are going to be out enforcing travel restrictions.
vexxxboy:
JaseNZ:
There will be real panic buying now, you thought it was bad before it will get worse yet.
you are not kidding, people are blocking the road in Rotorua trying to get into New World im sure the PM said dont panic buy, no one listens.
The Supermarkets and their workers will continue to remain open and continue to work.
I would hope they control the numbers in the supermarkets at any one time. People should be in their cars and be called to come in so that they don't queue outside, and there is controlled movement.
gchiu:
I would hope the police are going to be out enforcing travel restrictions.
Newshub alert just popped up saying just that and Defence personell, so Police, Army, Air Force people will be in that role
I've just been past our local Resene shop and it's absolutely heaving. I didn't think of redecorating during the lockdown but maybe some people decided they can't handle four weeks of that colour any more.
Most of the posters in this thread are just like chimpanzees on MDMA, full of feelings of bonhomie, joy, and optimism. Fred99 8/4/21
Does anyone have any ideas as to what will happen if (for example) a water pipe bursts, and a plumber is needed?
Sideface
Gurezaemon:Does anyone have any ideas as to what will happen if (for example) a water pipe bursts, and a plumber is needed?
Zepanda66:
Yeah, can't have people miss out on that $1.95 acrylic LED remote caddy from Wish. I really don't think it's that essential any more. Dropping to once a week or even once a fortnight to reduce risk would be fine by me. Or hold everything for a week to reduce chances of live culture on envelopes/whatever to keep the posties safe.
Many people may get regular medicines or medical supplies delivered by postal or courier services. They must continue.
All I can say is thank goodness they have finally pulled the trigger on level 4.
Hopefully it starts the clock on this all being over. I know that point is indeterminate.
The exit strategy will be interesting. If NZers have no widespread immunity, how do we reopen the border? Vaccines are a year away.
I didn’t think I would be praising a Labour Finance Minister, but what Grant Robertson just announced is awesome. If the pressure of mortgage repayments etc can be put on hold, that will go a long way to reducing anxiety. By the same token, renters need to be protected.
We are lucky to have our family at ‘home’. We have friends with children at university around the country that want their kids home (particularly now tertiary institutions have been told to close as soon as possible). The problem is, how to get them home.
“We’ve arranged a society based on science and technology, in which nobody understands anything about science technology. Carl Sagan 1996
jeeg:
Does food delivery services like UberEats stay open?
Don't think so "At Level 3, we are asking non-essential businesses to close. This includes bars, restaurants, cafes"
Since the bars, restaurants and cafes are shut, Uber Eats and other similar services are shut too.
PolicyGuy:
jeeg:
Does food delivery services like UberEats stay open?
Don't think so "At Level 3, we are asking non-essential businesses to close. This includes bars, restaurants, cafes"
Since the bars, restaurants and cafes are shut, Uber Eats and other similar services are shut too.
The PM explicitly mentioned takeaways being shutdown too. You'll have to learn to cook.
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Press release:
The Government is announcing significant further support for the economy, workers and businesses as the country unites to prepare for Alert Level 4 in the fight against COVID-19.
Cabinet today agreed to remove the cap on the Government’s wage subsidy scheme, which will inject a further $4 billion into the economy over the next eleven weeks.
In addition:
- The Government is expediting urgent work on new income support measures for all workers above and beyond the wage subsidy scheme, to be appropriate for how the economy will operate under Alert Level 4.
- The Government, Reserve Bank and retail banks have agreed in principle to significant temporary support for mortgage holders and a business finance guarantee scheme for those impacted by COVID-19 as the country moves towards Alert Level 4. The details of this will be announced in the next few days.
- Cabinet has agreed to freeze all rent increases and to look to extend no-cause terminations to protect people during this difficult time.
“We have a chance to beat this virus as we step up our public health response. We know this will have significant impacts on the economy, and we are doing what it takes in response to this rapidly changing situation,” Finance Minister Grant Robertson says.
“These significant measures – along with previous moves to raise benefits and tax changes to support cashflow – are focussed on cushioning the blow for workers and businesses as we respond to this unprecedented global crisis. As we have said before, we cannot guarantee to stop all job losses, but we are doing our best to cushion the blow.”
As this crisis evolves, we are moving rapidly to support New Zealanders.
Now that many New Zealanders may not be able to go in to work for the next few weeks, our priority is ensuring they continue to receive some form of income through this period.
All employers affected by COVID-19 will now be able to apply for the existing subsidy to support the wages of all of their workers.
The changes mean the forecast cost of the wage subsidy scheme is being lifted from $5.1 billion to $9.3 billion. This assumes 50% of businesses access the 12-week scheme.
“The $9.3 billion is an estimate, not a cap or a floor. This means the support will be there to meet the demand. We are doing what it takes to put support in place for workers and businesses.
“We can do this because New Zealand is one of the best-placed economies in the world to deal with COVID-19, due to our low Government debt and strong economic fundamentals going into this global crisis,” Grant Robertson said.
MSD will do its best to get payments out the door as quickly as possible, Minister for Social Development Carmel Sepuloni said.
“But we ask that people have patience and show a little kindness to staff there who are working as quickly as they possibly can. A payment system of this magnitude is unprecedented in New Zealand.”
Wage subsidy scheme – Cabinet decisions on 23 March:
A number of other important changes are being made to the scheme:
- The previous $150,000 cap is being lifted, so that all employers can access the full payments to subsidise each of their workers’ salaries.
- New businesses (eg. that are less than a year old) and high growth firms (eg. firms that have had significant increase in revenue) are also eligible. They need to demonstrate the revenue loss assessment against a similar time period, for example a 30% loss of income, attributable to COVID-19, in March 2020 compared to January 2020.
- Self-employed people with variable monthly incomes are eligible if can demonstrate the revenue loss assessment against the previous year’s monthly average (eg. 30% loss of income attributable to COVID-19 comparing March 2020 to the average monthly income in the period March 2019 to March 2020).
- The scheme does cover registered charities, non-governmental organisations, incorporated societies and post-settlement governance entities.
Other criteria still apply, including the 30% revenue reduction and for businesses, on their best endeavours, to maintain their named employees at 80% of their pre-COVID income. The same twelve-week period applies to the wage subsidy scheme. The new criteria will apply from midnight tonight.
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vexxxboy:
JaseNZ:
There will be real panic buying now, you thought it was bad before it will get worse yet.
you are not kidding, people are blocking the road in Rotorua trying to get into New World im sure the PM said dont panic buy, no one listens.
since when did people listen? if they did we wouldn't be in this situation
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