Opinion

NZ's second lockdown may be one too many

If life continues to be disrupted in New Zealand the public appetite for keeping COVID-19-free at any cost will likely wane.

Luke MalpassStuff political editor

Updated Aug 12, 2020 – 6.51pm, first published at 6.08pm

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Wellington | As lockdown resumed in New Zealand at midday on Wednesday – a strict one in Auckland and more lax ones around the rest of the country – the feeling swirling around New Zealand is again one of a siege.

It seems like a mere four cases (and another four probable ones) should be able to be suppressed: the rest of the world has loads of COVID-19 cases, what do a few matter? But that would be to misunderstand the political economy of COVID-19 in New Zealand.

Luke Malpass is political editor at Stuff, a New Zealand news site.