People who lost their jobs because of the mandates, and business owners who lost their livelihoods as a result of the lockdowns, have been heard as part of the hearings.
Independent political and social commentator Grant Duncan told The Front Page that, before the 2020 election, there was talk of a “team of five million”, but dissatisfaction with the Covid response was present well before the longer lockdowns of 2021.
“The Government of the day had a lot of popular support and trust, particularly mid-2020, but it wasn’t universal and that was clear from a survey that I did, and that, particularly on the right, there was quite a strong level of agreement with the idea that the economic costs of the public health measures outweighed the benefits of those measures.
“And so that would be a constituency of people, particularly in small business and things like this, who were directly feeling the effect, and so I don’t entirely agree with the idea that New Zealand was a tight team of 5 million at that time.”
Duncan also feels that, while a minority of people were particularly vocal about the response - such as those who refused the vaccine or who took part in the protest at Parliament - we have focused too much on them, compared to the general malaise felt by a larger section of the population.
" Under the surface, and we weren’t hearing much about it, was that people just generally getting worn out and annoyed with many of the consequences of the lockdown.
“These were people who would’ve been quite moderate, quite compliant, probably got vaccinated, but when they saw the consequences of trying to book online on MIQ, or the consequences for people whom they knew or difficulties getting stuff done, or the isolation, the loneliness for a lot of people, it started to wear them down.
“And so I think we shouldn’t put all of our attention, so to speak, when we are thinking about a shift of political opinion and social cohesion here on a small minority represented by people who protested outside of Parliament for a couple of weeks in February 2022.”
Political polling since the 2023 election has shown close to an even split between the left bloc in Parliament of Labour, Greens and Te Pāti Māori, and the right bloc of National, Act and NZ First.
Duncan said that was normal and, while topics such as Covid and the Treaty Principles Bill have stirred up division, that happened every so often, such as during the 1981 Springboks tour.
“What happens is that a quiet, underlying division is brought out onto the surface by some kind of event that divides public opinion, and it becomes a politically crucial, yes or no, kind of question.
“But what you’re seeing there really is the surfacing of what’s previously been under the surface. And part of the thing of being a democracy is that people are permitted to argue and express their differences of opinion.”
Duncan said we shouldn’t aim for a “10 out of 10″ utopian society, as that was not possible. He gave New Zealand a 5 out of 10, and said we should be happy about that.
“The question really for a society like ours is how do we manage our differences when they do come up? And how do we act democratically to hear one another out and to act respectfully across the political divide?”
Listen to the full episode for more on social unity in New Zealand, and what’s emerged from the latest round of Covid-19 hearings.
The Front Page is a daily news podcast from the New Zealand Herald, available to listen to every weekday from 5am. The podcast is presented by Chelsea Daniels, an Auckland-based journalist with a background in world news and crime/justice reporting who joined NZME in 2016.
You can follow the podcast at iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
