“The Government is making ad hoc COVID-19 decisions that don’t meet its own criteria. We need clarity, certainty and common sense for New Zealanders to buy into the Traffic Light System”, says ACT Leader David Seymour.

“The Government’s Traffic Light System says a region will be in Red when the health system faces an ‘unsustainable number of hospitalisations’.

“It’s clear the health system isn’t being overwhelmed right now.

“Ashley Bloomfield said six days ago that ‘our hospitalisations have very much levelled off across Tāmaki Makaurau’.

“Today in Parliament, Jacinda Ardern agreed and said there had been a decline in hospitalisations. She explained the decision to put Auckland in Red by saying at the start of the Traffic Light System the Government would be doing things differently.

“What’s the point in having criteria if you’re not going to use them? New Zealanders should be able to look at a government website and know what they read is correct.

“None of it makes any sense. As usual, the Government is just making it up as it goes along.

“If the hospital system in regions at Red aren’t facing an unsustainable number of hospitalisations, why on earth are those places at Red?

“There’s also no logic to the fact that the South Island is in Orange given it doesn’t meet the criteria of having community transmission.

“Labour’s logic at the border is also lacking.

“Does the risk of fully-vaccinated, negative-tested New Zealanders returning home and self-isolating really outweigh the benefit of them spending Christmas with their families when thousands who’ve tested positive can self-isolate?

“Meanwhile, keeping the border closed until April, while Australian and Canadian schools and universities are back in the market for international students, seriously holds back the economy.

“The Government needs to start balancing all of the costs of COVID-19.

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