The Dunedin City Council could fill the "gaps" if the Government’s Covid-19 response support package, expected today, falls short for some in the city.
Dunedin Mayor Aaron Hawkins yesterday would not rule out further support for the sectors most affected by the efforts to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.
"There’s no doubt that in the short-term this will be painful for many sectors in our local community, not just economically," he said.
"I think we’re all looking keenly to see what the Government’s response to that is on a macro-level when they announce their support package [today].
"We’ll see, we’ll have a better sense then of, what’s being offered and to whom, and potentially where the gaps might be and how we might help — continue to help — people who might need it in the city.
"They [the Government] have made it pretty clear that the tourism sector and the business community are front of mind for them as they’re working through their various support options.
"So, we’ll see what comes out [today] and that will be an ongoing conversation no doubt between now and when we sign off on the annual plan in May."
Mr Hawkins said he was satisfied with the response and the communication of, especially, Director-general of health Ashley Bloomfield.
He said he was receiving regular briefings from Civil Defence and would today be briefed by the Southern District Health Board.
Yesterday, the council announced it would not host public events for more than 100 people, and staff organising smaller events would decide whether to go ahead on a case-by-case basis.
Swimming pools, libraries, museums and galleries would remain open for now.
Mr Hawkins said he would work remotely as much as possible for now and had advised elected officials — in the same way council chief executive Dr Sue Bidrose had advised council staff — if they were not feeling 100%, he would prefer them to put in their apologies.
Standing orders did allow for people to participate in meetings remotely, but specifically precluded those people from counting towards the quorum for the meeting.
However, he said the council was investigating whether those rules could be temporarily amended.
He said the council would continue to update the community when required.
"For a variety of reasons and for a variety of different people this is a stressful and an anxious time, and now is a good time for us to be a little bit more patient with each other and kind toward each other.
"It’s a collective responsibility trying to contain this," he said.
"The key message at this point is to stay calm, to be responsible and to be prepared."
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Comments
Why is Mayor Hawkins working from home when there hasn't been even a single case of coronavirus recorded in Dunedin? Has he returned from overseas recently?
Is this his idea of leadership, or is he just worried he might catch something from one of his constituents on the way to work?
Instead of sitting home dreaming up subsidies, perhaps he should be out actually supporting these businesses and showing solidarity with the people of Dunedin.
Mr Hawkins your lack of leadership is exactly what I expected in a Crisis. You have had your head buried in the sand continuing on your extravagant spending of public money despite the inevitable looming impact of the virus. Now that you have been forced to take your head out of the sand you still fail to take any decisive action instead choosing to sit on your hands and wait for others to make decisions for you.
Hawkins hasn’t got a clue. Promoted way beyond his ability.
A deferrence in any rate rises would be helpful. There will be many who will need every dollar they can muster. The economic impact cannot be taken for granted. An announcement from both the DCC and ORC would be the right thing to do. The less financial stress people need to experience the better. Take some leadership. Time to act where it's needed.
I think what people aren't getting is that option B was Vandervis. He has no susport or leadership ability. He would have made a total hash of it all.
The jumping up and down shouting and stamping his feet would have made a laughing stock of NZ. Not what is needed in a time like this.