Stimulating the economy

We have now been at alert level 2 for one week and Covid-19 appears to be under control. This is no small achievement and we can take our hats off to central government for taking strong and decisive action. We must also thank the community for staying home, maintaining social distance and practising good personal hygiene.

We will never know how many lives this action saved, but we can only look to overseas examples to imagine what might have happened.

This stark reality hit me recently while watching news reports and seeing mass graves in Brazil and its health system completely overwhelmed.

To stamp out Covid-19, all New Zealanders were asked to go into lock-down, and extreme situation not seen for many generations, to avoid adverse health implications seen in many other countries.

The preservation of our public health status has created a universal benefit for us all. However, it has had a profound impact on those who have lost their businesses or jobs, or are likely to in the near future.

In Waipa¯ , those working in tourism, accommodation, hospitality, service and construction have been more severely impacted. We might all be eventually affected in some way, but those who have lost their total income deserve support from central or local government.

Council is not in a position where it has the ability for large scale income redistribution. However, it can try to stimulate the economy by investing in core infrastructure and promoting activities, with other funders, to create opportunities for employment and business growth.

These are medium-to-long term initiatives but are necessary to create a climate for investment in the future.

This leads me to an important point, and in the Prime Minister’s words, we need to be kind and support those who have made financial sacrifices so that we can enjoy a healthy lifestyle without the threat of Covid-19. This is what your councillors strive to achieve — the fair and equitable sharing of resources for the benefit of the community.

I have mentioned in earlier articles that Council is working hard to identify projects that could be delayed to reduce the impact on rates.

But this is in a climate where our non-rate-related income has been severely constrained, and we are also looking for ways to promote our recovery.

Should we, for argument’s sake, reduce our commitment to district promotion and grants when these activities will stimulate our visitor industry, fill our accommodation and support local businesses?

Should we pull back on building new pensioner houses which will not only fill a demand, but also create work for the construction industry?

For those of us who have retained our income, the challenges during the recovery period might not compare to those who have lost their income and may be dependent on state support for the first time in their lives.

Everyone’s circumstances will be different, and Council wants to hear about your concerns so that we can assist whilst maintaining our existing services.

We will provide details on how you can access this support over the next few weeks as the details of the proposed Annual Plan are finalised.

In the meantime, stay safe and enjoy extending your bubble just a little bit.