Yes – it has really happened. Today is day 14 of our quarantine. We have had our final checks, and now we are free to leave – to walk out of the hotel and go free. Without any of the restrictions of the past two weeks, or even those of the past 8½ months.
New Zealand is Covid-free. And – apart from its closed borders – life here is carrying on as normal.
Not so, sadly, in the UK which – as the vaccine is slowly rolled out – continues with its tiered restrictions. And, even when a majority of the population has been vaccinated, life will be very different, and certainly not a return to normal as we have known it.
For Lois and I these restrictions have hardly been more than a minor inconvenience, and I am – once again – aware of how privileged and blessed we are.
For so many people that is not the case. There are so many for whom the pandemic and the lockdown restrictions have brought, and continue to bring, hardship – bereavement, loneliness, loss of their livelihoods; financial struggles, anxiety and stress.
And so, as we walk out of our quarantine hotel, my prayer is – for all whose lives continue to be affected by the pandemic, the advent prayer:
‘The people walking in darkness have seen a great light;
On those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.’
In its news bulletin this morning, Radio New Zealand reported on a WHO spokesperson commending New Zealand’s response to the pandemic as ‘an example of a country that has worked well with a community to effectively communicate what is being done.’
“In New Zealand there was a lot of clarity about what was expected and why things were going to be done and that’s extremely important, that people understand what’s going to happen and why it’s going to happen.”
Now, New Zealand is unique: relatively isolated from the rest of the world and with a small population, it hasn’t had nearly the same challenges as the USA, the UK and other countries in Europe.
Nevertheless, I have been totally impressed with the way the country has managed its response to the pandemic: a huge contrast to the shambles of our own government’s response.
True to her leadership style, Jacinda Ardern responded promptly and decisively to the pandemic, with both empathy and humility. She appeared to listen to both the scientists and ordinary people and the approach they took clearly prioritised the life and well-being of New Zealand’s citizens above the economy or any political considerations.
Right from the start, New Zealand introduced a system of four alert levels – each with clear criteria for the underlying risk assessments and the management strategies to be implemented at each level. The messaging was clear, consistent and unambiguous, and didn’t keep changing as the pandemic unfolded. As a result, people knew where they stood, what was expected of them and why, and they responded accordingly.
Since arriving in New Zealand and experiencing first hand their approach to managed isolation/quarantine, we have been even more aware of how effective and efficient the measures are. As new arrivals we have been treated with respect and kept informed. The messages we have received about social distancing and protective measures have been clear and simple; their test and trace system has worked effectively, with clear communications once it was discovered that someone on our flight had tested positive; the armed forces, drafted in to supervise and manage the isolation facilities have done their job well and with grace.
And, most of all, we know that we can look forward, in just a few days’ time, to living a life unconstrained by the threat of second waves, repeated lockdowns, or muddled and contradictory advice.
I realise I have been very quiet throughout this pandemic. Partly that has been deliberate – not wanting to add my noise to all the many wise, witty, woeful and other opinions on Covid-19 and its impact. Partly it has been because I, too, have been trying to make some sense of it all. And partly it is just that I haven’t felt motivated to do so.
Anyway, today I wrote a letter to my MP, about some of the things that have been stirring in me as I look ahead to coming out of lockdown.
What do you think? Are these things we should be pushing for, and if so, how can we do so more effectively? I’d really like to hear others’ views.
…
Taiwo Owatemi, MP
House of Commons
Westminster
…
23 April 2020
Dear Taiwo
I hope you are keeping well and safe, and coping OK with all
the new ways of working and additional demands placed on you by the pandemic
and lockdown. Thank you for all you are doing locally to support our
communities during this vulnerable time.
I have been impressed by the support that has been shown to
our NHS workers and other essential workers during this time, and by the strong
sense of community and caring for our neighbours that has emerged. At the same
time, it seems to me that the pandemic has brought to the fore many of the inequalities
in our society, and the failures of our current economic and political models
to address these.
It is striking that, in response to the pandemic, the
government has mobilised resources, invested in our public services, and taken
on board policies that the Labour Party, the Green Party and others have been
advocating for years.
As we look ahead to a time beyond the constraints of the
lockdown, I am concerned that our government will focus solely on trying once
again to boost our economy, falling back to old policies and ignoring the
failures in these highlighted by the pandemic. We rely, therefore, on you and
your fellow opposition MPs to hold the government to account and to push for
better policies that will benefit all. I feel strongly that we need to be
calling for these now, at an early stage before too many decisions are fixed. I
would particularly encourage you to push for a change in policy in five areas:
That the government continues to invest strongly
in the NHS and our other public services. As a paediatrician, I have seen
first-hand, the damaging effects of years of austerity on our NHS. I have been
deeply concerned at the way nurses, social workers, teachers and other public
service workers have been devalued. It is all very well for the government to
encourage people to clap for our nurses, and to give badges to our social
workers, but this will only have any meaning if it is backed up by meaningful
pay-rises that persist after the immediate situation, and a sustained
investment in services to turn around the impact of high case-loads and
stressful working conditions. And this needs to extend to all essential public
service workers: we need to move away from the denigrating terminology of ‘the unskilled
workforce’ and show that we value all those who keep our country going, not
just during a crisis, but on an ongoing day-to-day basis.
That the government radically steps up its
commitment to and investment in protecting our environment. In particular, that
it should take this opportunity to adopt a green new deal. One of the
unexpected benefits of the lockdown around the world has been an improvement in
our environment, with cleaner air in cities, massive reductions in carbon
outputs, and a recovery of some of our damaged biodiversity. It has shown what
could be possible if we took the climate emergency as seriously as the Covid-19
emergency. Rather than reinvesting in environmentally-harmful big infrastructure
projects such as a third Heathrow runway and HS2, in fossil fuels and
industries that are heavily dependent on fossil fuels, we need our government
to be investing in new green technologies and green jobs. The Conservatives
were deeply inadequate in their commitments to the environment in their
election manifesto; we need to call them out on this and to get them to commit
to the kind of initiatives and the levels of investment that the Labour Party
and others were calling for. In particular, having shown that it is possible, we
should be pushing the government to commit to a net zero-carbon economy by 2030,
not 2050.
That the government invests in and supports
local businesses and small-scale enterprises. Following the 2008 financial
crash, the government bailed out the banks, which were the cause of the
problem, not those who had suffered as a result of it. Since then, the
Conservative government has continued to give tax breaks to big multi-national
corporations and to favour the wealthy. There are big companies and wealthy billionaires
already calling for bail-outs and providing persuasive arguments as to why they
need those. Unlike many smaller family-run businesses, these companies have the
financial resilience to weather this storm. Sadly, though, and again unlike
smaller businesses, it is the big companies and the wealthy who have the power
to influence government. As we come through this crisis, we need our government
to give ongoing and meaningful support to those who most need it. That is the
only way we will see a sustained and worthwhile improvement in our society.
That the government seriously considers
introducing a universal basic income. In spite of the government’s rhetoric, we
have not all been in this crisis together, nor have we all been equally
affected. It is the unemployed, those with unstable income, workers in the gig
economy, single parents and other marginal groups who have been most affected,
who don’t have the privilege of working from home, and who have not had the
financial resilience to cope with several weeks or months of lockdown. It was
clear, well before the Covid pandemic, that our benefits system is broken. This
has been made even more obvious by the impact of the lockdown. We need to
ensure that all in our country have the means of sustaining the essentials of
life, including housing, food, heating and clothing, whatever individual or
societal circumstances they may face, whether that is flooding, illness,
disability or a loss of employment.
That the government commits to a sustained and
increased level of support for overseas aid and development. Given the impact
of this pandemic on our economy, I am sure there will be calls to protect our
own and to leave other countries to deal with their problems. This would be a
disaster. Whether or not the virus takes a strong hold in the low-income
countries of sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and South America, these countries will
suffer far more than the wealthy West as a result of the global economic
downturn. And it will be the poor in these countries who suffer most. The
pandemic has demonstrated that we are a global community, and we can not afford
to ignore the needs of our neighbours who do not have the same privileges we
enjoy. There have been some in the Conservative Party who have called for a
reduction in the 0.7% of GDP which goes to overseas aid and development. This
cannot be allowed to happen. If anything, we should be increasing the proportion
of our wealth which goes towards supporting those less well off than ourselves.
Thank you for taking the time to read this. I hope you will
be able to pick up on these points and find ways to raise them with the government.
