There was a real case for serious policy or fiscal stimulus around New Zealand, and particularly in the big cities, in order to “get things going”.
“I think we need to raise the animal spirits, if you like, of the business community.”
Bridges said a boost in confidence in Auckland was needed at both business and consumer levels.
Things were tough in the city which hadn’t caught a break since before the Covid-19 pandemic started, he said.
“There is more stimulus, there is more policy work that government could be doing to provide a better business environment in Auckland in the here and now,” he said.
“I think [the Government has] done some worthy long-term things, but in the end, if all we worry about is the long term, I’m not sure there’ll be that many Kiwis left in Auckland.
“It’s now that they need to be focused on.”
Employers and Manufacturers Association (EMA) head of advocacy Alan McDonald said while the agriculture industry was bolstering employment elsewhere, Auckland had different economic drivers.
“Numbers from the Auckland Council Economic Unit indicated unemployment would be quite high [in the June quarter] and it has been for some time.
“There are some signs of recovery but they’re being led by the regional economy and primary sector and Auckland is more about manufacturing and services.
“Hospitality, tourism, education sectors have all been down as well.”
McDonald said EMA had received a spike in calls to its advice line about redundancies and restructures since March.
“We had hoped 5.1 [in December 2024] might be the bottom of Auckland’s unemployment numbers, but we’ve been hearing from March until now that things are still very tight and very tough.”
But things were starting to turn, he said.
The Stats NZ quarterly labour market figures released on Wednesday also showed unemployment was more than double the national rate at 12.1%.
-RNZ
