The end of the beginning: How NZ took on Covid-19 and the challenge ahead

"We move down to Covid-19 alert level 1 from midnight tonight."

Those words on Monday, June 8, from Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern signalled the end of an extraordinary time in the lives of New Zealanders.

Seventy-eight days earlier, on March 23, the nation stopped as she announced we were moving into lockdown. We survived life in our bubbles but now face a huge challenge to rebuild our economy.

SIMON WILSON reflects on how, together, we saw off the immediate threat of Covid-19. He looks to the future and asks an important question: Will we take the chance to rethink