ACT, Te Pāti Māori clash over Omicron border management

February 3, 2022
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer and ACT leader David Seymour.

ACT says it makes little sense to keep MIQ and wants border restrictions eased. But, Te Pāti Māori is worried about how that might impact whānau.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is expected to announce how the Government would ease MIQ requirements on Thursday morning, after Omicron delayed its earlier border plans.

Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer wanted the Government to recognise the hard work of Māori health providers over the summer to try and boost vaccination rates.

David Seymour wants borders to open, however Debbie Ngarewa-Packer wants to protect whānau.

“I’d like [Ardern] to announce she will focus on inequities that Māori are experiencing and that she will hold the border to help return tangata whenua,” Ngarewa-Packer said.

“But, most importantly, [I’d like her to] focus on preparing communities to focus on lessening the gap of inequities that we have for Māori [in the vaccine rollout].”

ACT leader David Seymour, meanwhile, called for an “intelligent balance” in the Covid-19 response.

He said this would weigh up the need to protect Kiwis from the virus, while also considering the needs of businesses that needed overseas workers, sectors like tourism and education, and New Zealanders stranded overseas.

“Right now, we’re keeping the border closed even though it hasn’t kept Omicron out and allowing people to come and self-isolate [instead of having to stay in MIQ] wouldn’t increase the spread of it in a noticeable way.

“At the end of the day, everyone’s going to get it,” Seymour said.

To date during the pandemic not all Kiwis wanting to return home from overseas have been able to.

Ngarewa-Packer said Seymour’s argument was contradictory, given Omicron had made its way into the community because people had been allowed into the country through MIQ.

“David Seymour and his ilk” were just taking care of “those at the top”, she said.

At the same time, Te Pāti Māori had a focus on “those of us whānau who have to live with the consequences of the so-called intelligent decisions that actually become more about profit than people”, Ngarewa-Packer added.

Last month, researchers told 1News they feared Māori would bear the brunt of an Omicron outbreak because the group’s vaccination coverage was lagging and many were not yet eligible for a booster.

Māori vaccine rates are still lagging behind.

On Wednesday, the Government reduced the interval between a person’s second Covid-19 vaccine dose and booster from four to three months in the bid to get as many people boosted as quickly as possible.

Ngarewa-Packer said thought also needed to be given to people who were struggling to put kai on the table, rather than emphasising economic and business needs.

Seymour responded: “If Debbie wants to talk about kai, the risk is because we won’t let people come in and work and pick [food], it all rots on the ground.”

Farmers had warned some of their crops would be left to rot this harvest as it struggled to fill skill shortages while borders were closed.

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