Editorial: Smooth work at the top of Government undercut by border fumbles

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has once again shown herself to be a confident navigator through the latest coronavirus squall.

Her disarming communication skills, command of her subject detail and political instincts set her apart. Even in a comparison with the leaders of much larger countries, her abilities and approachability make her stand out.

Like a world-class first-five, Ardern makes it all look a bit effortless. Yet even a star player needs good support.

With the notable exception of the consistently reliable Finance Minister Grant Robertson, Ardern cannot help but show up her colleagues and rivals to some extent.

Covid-19 has been a very tough stress test for politicians everywhere in the world. The virus ruthlessly exposes incompetence, inconsistent messaging, lack of attention to detail, complacent shortcuts and questionable judgement and strategy.

Here the coronavirus has already claimed one Health Minister, and now the new one is feeling the heat.

Ardern said on Friday that genomic testing had found no links to previous cases of community spread, or to border facilities and staff.

But the Auckland outbreak has coincided with revelations over the testing of border staff with Minister of Health Chris Hipkins admitting that they should have occurred earlier and more often.

On Saturday he said that only 60 per cent of people working at a quarantine hotel had been tested and said he "absolutely accepts responsibility" for the lack of testing at the border facilities.

"It is frustrating that we were not getting the testing... we expected to be happening," he said.

He said that by today, all frontline staff would have been tested. Those tested included staff in isolation, airport staff and maritime staff.

The border, managed isolation and quarantine is collectively the area of most concern to both health experts and the public. So it seems strange that the Government has not been as laser-focused on that area as it could have been.

People's sense of safety in the pandemic is tied up with the idea of entry points being watertight.

The Government has sometimes seemed to be playing catch-up and making running repairs on border issues: On testing of arrivals, on escapees, and now tests for workers. The debates over who to give entry exemptions to and who pays the costs of quarantine have also nibbled away at the sense of unity.

Overall, as the country waits out the incubation period of our coronavirus outbreak, the news so far has been positive with an impressive amount of testing and trace work suggesting it is a single incident and is being contained. Infected people are now being shifted into quarantine.

The Government has - very belatedly compared to other countries - started trying to get the public used to wearing masks. It has held back on pulling the trigger for mandatory masking. There is finally a push to make the tracing app more user-friendly by ensuring businesses display the right QR code posters.

Perhaps our general great success against a difficult foe has made the missteps more glaring.

The basic approach to go hard and early is the right one. Stamping on the virus is the only way to provide the arena for normal life to resume.