Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announces phased end to Auckland restrictions; Waikato at level 3; rest of NZ stays at level 2. Video / NZ Herald
OPINION:
One of the most frequently asked questions when you are on a road trip with the kids is: "How long until we get there?"
These days, you can look at your navigation map and give them a pretty good idea.
But the Beehive's road map for grown-ups in Auckland is a bit like taking them on a road to nowhere. It has no finite end. The city could still be on the road at Christmas, providing the road doesn't leave the city.
And with Covid numbers showing no sign of tailing off - even the Prime Minister's now calling it a tentacle that's hard to shake - they can't say how long we'll be on the road and where the map will take us.
And that's about as close as Jacinda Ardern got to admitting the lockdown's been a failure, which it most certainly has been, although they would have us believe that without it thousands would have the virus and our hospitals would resemble a medical outpost in a war zone.
If that's the case, it's a reflection on abysmal planning.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern during the the post-Cabinet press conference. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Ardern did say it's clear that long periods of restrictions haven't got us to zero cases, which of course is stating the bleedingly obvious.
"But that's okay, elimination was important because we didn't have vaccines. Now we do we can begin to change the way we do things," she added.
At least elimination's off the table.
But the question is, when will that change come? Imagine if you are a hospitality business in Auckland, trying to plan for your future. This indeterminate announcement tells you you'll be able to open in a limited fashion once we have reached the third signpost.
That's the problem with this plan. There's no sign at the end of the road and there's no telling how long the road in an around Auckland will be.
A vaccination target to raise the chequered flag would have helped.
In the meantime, if the Aucklanders reading this do have nine mates around for a barbie - only two households maximum mind, along with masks and social distancing - keep an eye on the weather forecast. You won't be allowed to go inside.
But what if you are caught short?
Ardern giggled her way through that one: "Keep it outside, nice and simple. If you haven't got a good bladder, don't stay for long."
