The wheels have well and truly fallen off this Government right as we should be reaching the crucial juncture of opening up our internal borders and restoring freedoms to Kiwis, Leader of the Opposition Judith Collins says.

“No one would blame New Zealanders for feeling alarmed and blindsided by the deluge of news yesterday exposing the chaos behind the curtain of the Labour Government.

“First we had Minister Hipkins finally voicing what many of us had long realised – that Covid-19 will spread across New Zealand and cases numbers will rise. For those who have placed their trust in this Government and aren’t engaged with day-to-day politics this will have jarred with what they have heard from the podium for the past almost two years.

“Then Minister Little seems to have taken a shot of truth serum and finally acknowledged what the National Party have been repeatedly warning about all year – our health system has been neglected by the Government and is not able to cope with the Delta outbreak.

“This would have been bad enough, but then add to that the Prime Minister’s bizarre and fleeting visit to Auckland and you clearly see a Government that is in panic mode.

“The Prime Minister did not even visit a single hospitality business nor even any business impacted by her lockdowns. Instead she visited JMP Engineering which operated throughout the lockdown. It may have been better if she hadn’t visited at all rather than the cagey and stage-managed few hours she squeezed in before APEC.

“The Prime Minister cannot be allowed to go into hiding today. She must answer for herself and her ministers. She must end the speculation about timeslot travel across the Auckland border and not make Aucklanders wait until the next episode at the podium. She must end MIQ and allow Kiwis to come home. She must be accountable for Kiwis with Covid isolating in cars and garden sheds.

“It appears some of Jacinda Ardern’s ministers have lost patience waiting for her to be honest about her Government’s failings and are beginning to speak up themselves. Ministers Little and Jackson have broken ranks and for New Zealand’s sake I hope they’re not the only ones.”

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