President of the Police Association Chris Cahill describes the mood within police as he says the protest could go on for months. Video / Mark Mitchell / George Heard
A car is yet to be towed from the "village" protesters have built on Parliament grounds, with a tow truck industry spokesperson saying the job could require two dozen companies.
Police claimed "progress" on Wednesday as 12 cars moved on from blocking streets around Parliament, while also conceding a larger number had moved in to replace them.
Assistant Police Commissioner Richard Chambers, who is leading the operation about the anti-mandate protesters at Parliament, estimated 450 vehicles were blocking surrounding streets.
Meanwhile more than 20 protesters have gathered outside Wellington's District Court, ahead of many reappearing for their trespass charges today.
Police Association president Chris Cahill said the protest was a "bit of a dog's breakfast" and the bad news was that he thought they would still be there in three months' time.
It was not an easy situation to deal with and they had significant issues getting assistance to tow vehicles.
"When they did try a bit of proactive moving on Thursday last week, it didn't work. It just swelled the numbers dramatically."
National Recovery Alliance - a group of seven Auckland towing companies - spokesperson Chris Ratcliffe said it would take two dozen tow truck companies and take a day to clear the area.
Ratcliffe said while some companies weren't interested, others would be looking to make up some of the losses suffered over lockdown and be willing to take risks.
Police watching the protesters on day 10 of the anti-mandate protest. Photo / Mark Mitchell
It was unclear how many tow trucks would be needed, but they could look to garner about 20 trucks which could probably clear 400 vehicles within a day or so.
This didn't take into account moving the bigger vehicles.
"Towies are a pretty tough bunch so they can usually handle a little bit of abuse. The challenge I guess they have is around physical safety.
"If trucks were substantially damaged or vandalised, there would be a six month wait to replace these vehicles."
He was sure they would get a bit of extra money for doing this job, but the reality was how much extra justifies the risk.
Broadly speaking, most of the towing industry supported the vaccine and the bigger question was whether the mandates should still be in place.
Part-time protester Leighton Baker told Newstalk ZB's Mike Hosking this morning a whole village had been built within two weeks.
The intent of the protest was getting New Zealand working together instead of the fragmented society we have today, said Baker, who is also the former leader of the New Conservative Party.
Thousands of people were turning up every day and the protesters would appoint a mediator if the Government engaged with them.
Protesters wanted the Government to end all mandates, and said until this occurred, they would continue to see the protest grow.
He said the Government needed to engage with them and the most disappointing thing was that no one would.
He denied witnessing any abuse or threatening behaviour and said it was the most peaceful, calm, respectful place. "It's like a big family reunion."
The thousands of protesters have been working together to manage everything from food to sanitation at the protest site. Photo / George Heard
Meanwhile Wellington Chamber of Commerce chief executive Simon Arcus said tents spreading around the city was a real worry and a move in the wrong direction.
The protest was deterring people from coming into the city and into offices where they would shop. Businesses as far up as Cuba St were closing their doors early.
"They are challenged on issues, they are showed literature and they end up very intimidated and wanting to walk away from the whole thing."
Arcus told RNZ the vehicles needed to be moved and the intimidating behaviour needed to be acted on.
Council could deter or freeze rates and offer free parking to help the businesses out, he said.
"There is that feeling of these individuals being entrenched... it's a very worrying scenario."
Retail NZ chief executive Greg Harford said retail businesses in Wellington were suffering from the ongoing protest, and some may not survive.
"We're talking to people who are making $150 in sales in their shops during a day," Harford told TVNZ's Breakfast show.
"That's just not enough to keep the lights going and pay the staff."
He said if the protest continued, we would see "permanent damage" to some Wellington businesses.
"You are going to see some businesses just not make it through."
A yoga session on day 9 of the protest. Photo / George Heard
On Tuesday, Police Commissioner Andy Coster said it was time for action to move the vehicles, parked illegally for over a week now, and he reiterated yesterday morning that towing would occur that day.
However, by the day's end not a single car had been towed.
Chambers said police now had "towing capacity", after finding mass resistance from towing companies to support the effort and no reply yet from the Defence Force about assistance, but had held off any action after engaging with protest leaders.
Four Defence Force vehicles had been seen arriving in Wellington, however, with a spokeswoman saying there were "being pre-positioned should they be required".
Chambers said police needed to think about how best to manage the situation without it escalating, while dealing with the protest "influencers".
"We are making small steps," Chambers said.
"I can't tell you this is going to be resolved tomorrow, but we are seeing encouraging signs from the fact a small number of vehicles have left and there were no major incidents.
"We are making confident, albeit small, steps forward."
However, protesters the Herald spoke to shortly after said they had no intention of moving on, and comments on social media channels suggest the leaders spoken to may have limited influence among the wider protest group.
Asked why there were no attempts to remove the tents on day one, when there were only a handful and given it was also illegal at that point, Chambers said he could not confirm when a request had come from the Speaker of the House to remove them.
Food is prepared all day for the masses at the Parliament protest. Photo / George Heard
Meanwhile Act Leader David Seymour has defended meeting the protesters yesterday.
Once they stopped disrupting nearby businesses and the university and ended the more aggressive behaviour, it was then time to being dialogue with them, he told the AM show.
"No one can support threats and so on. You can't be talking about liberties while you are making threats of violence," he said.
"These people are human, they are part of New Zealand and at the end of this we need to glue this country back together."
Although it was possible to disagree with the nature of the protest and some of the earlier incidents, he said the wider question was when New Zealand would end this way of life and get its freedoms back."
Seymour said the protest was "just a concentrated form of the frustrations [Kiwis] have with an ongoing, controlling and cack-handed response to Covid".
He said solving the overall situation would be a lot more challenging.
"I just hope that we can look at this situation in a more mature way than most people have so far and try and get to a stage where people aren't in the vicinity of Parliament."
He believed some people were now protesting against the Government's response to the protest.
Act leader David Seymour during his press conference after meeting with protest representatives. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Wellington Mayor Andy Foster also told Newstalk ZB's Kate Hawkesby this morning he has no issue with someone talking with the protesters.
"I know there's a view that it legitimises the protest but the purpose of talking is to try and resolve it," he said.
"Most Wellingtonian are already frustrated and want this thing bought to an end as quickly as possible, we want our streets back, we want people to feel safe and businesses in that area be able to operate again."
Seymour met some of the protest leaders yesterday, saying the time was ripe for a "mature conversation" about de-escalation.
"A large part of their concern is they feel no one's listening to them," he said.
Seymour said political leaders would not meet protest leaders as long as abusive and threatening behaviour continued.
But he said dehumanising protesters or calling them "feral" was highly unhelpful.
"One of the things that's clear is it's becoming increasingly organised."
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern later admonished Seymour, saying she did not think it was a "responsible thing to do for a party that champions law and order".
A yoga session on day 9 of the protest at Parliament. Photo / George Heard
"Every party should be focused on two things, making sure we're working hard to protect New Zealanders during this pandemic and second thing is that there is activity outside that has tipped into illegal activity.
"The focus needs to be removing the illegal activity blocking Wellingtonians' lives."
However Wellington Mayor Andy Foster told Newstalk ZB's Kate Hawkesby this morning he has no issue with someone talking with the protesters.
"I know there's a view that it legitimises the protest but the purpose of talking is to try and resolve it," he said.
"Most Wellingtonian are already frustrated and want this thing bought to an end as quickly as possible, we want our streets back, we want people to feel safe and businesses in that area be able to operate again."
The number of tents on site have been increasing every day. Photo / George Heard
As the occupation enters day 10, reporters at the scene have noticed the presence of protesters steadily growing each day, with still hundreds of tents covering Parliament lawn and even gardens nearby.
There is also an increasingly settled presence, with well-organised and stocked food services, medical tents and daycare, and even the odd homemade street sign.
The portaloos are cleaned and serviced regularly and straw has been laid over the grounds to soak up any mud from the weekend's deluge.
There are at least three musical stages, where bands and DJs play throughout the day and into the early evening, giving an almost festival atmosphere, with even their own "security" working to maintain peace and discouraging alcohol and drug use.
There has been minimal tension or violence since the mass arrests on Thursday, however, there continue to be reports of protesters abusing passers-by and even of those presenting a petition around Oranga Tamariki reforms.
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson was present for the petition and said the vibe was "intimidatory".
Police at the protests at Parliament in Wellington. Photo / George Heard
"It was also overriding a really important kaupapa about protecting our children as a nation. In all honesty, I was infuriated by the interaction."
Davidson said she'd had to change her security plans because of the protesters.
Despite assurances from organisers the protest is peaceful and focused on removing vaccine mandates, signs remain promoting violence against politicians and journalists.
These are widespread online in social media channels, with even talk of violent, military-style takeovers.
Asked about these threats and the risk profile Chambers said he wouldn't comment on anything specific but the safety of "everybody" remained their focus.
Ardern also said she was concerned foreign money could be funding the protest.
"I certainly couldn't rule out a connection with groups offshore," she said.
