The Country
  • The Country home
  • Latest news
  • Audio & podcasts
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life
  • Listen on iHeart radio

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • Coast & Country News
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Horticulture
  • Animal health
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life

Media

  • Podcasts
  • Video

Weather

  • Kaitaia
  • Whāngarei
  • Dargaville
  • Auckland
  • Thames
  • Tauranga
  • Hamilton
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Te Kuiti
  • Taumurunui
  • Taupō
  • Gisborne
  • New Plymouth
  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Whanganui
  • Palmerston North
  • Levin
  • Paraparaumu
  • Masterton
  • Wellington
  • Motueka
  • Nelson
  • Blenheim
  • Westport
  • Reefton
  • Kaikōura
  • Greymouth
  • Hokitika
  • Christchurch
  • Ashburton
  • Timaru
  • Wānaka
  • Oamaru
  • Queenstown
  • Dunedin
  • Gore
  • Invercargill

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / The Country

David Seymour on vaccine mandate and Groundswell protest

The Country
15 Nov, 2021 12:45 AM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Act Party leader David Seymour. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Act Party leader David Seymour. Photo / Mark Mitchell

The Act Party is calling for regular testing as an alternative for those who refuse to get vaccinated.

Act leader David Seymour is not a fan of the Government's vaccine mandate which starts today.

Under the mandate, teachers and other education staff, as well as those in the health and disability sectors, must have had at least one dose and be fully vaccinated by January 1.

Although he opposed the plan, Seymour told The Country's Jamie Mackay he was not an anti-vaxxer.

"I'm quite the opposite. I often have to restrain my frustration with people who won't just take the miracle of science."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The rapid development of the mRNA vaccine "to solve one of the world's biggest problems," should be championed rather than avoided, Seymour said.

"Anyone who believes in freedom should be celebrating that - I was certainly happy to get vaccinated."

The main problem the Government had was trying to find a solution that would suit everybody, Seymour said.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"All politics is ultimately about finding ways for people to live together peacefully, and right now we've got … a relatively small group … of people who are totally resistant to the idea of being vaccinated."

Some of this group were essential workers, such as teachers, midwives and mental health staff, Seymour said.

Personally, he preferred that people in the workplace were vaccinated.

"Certainly all of Act's Caucus are and Act's staff are too – that's our view and that's our position."

Discover more

PM on Delta: Rural areas can't afford to see this as Auckland issue

13 Oct 12:30 AM

David Seymour: 'If we don't tack now we might miss the mark'

05 Oct 01:31 AM
New Zealand

Primary sector supports vaccination rollout

17 Oct 10:00 PM
New Zealand

Health authorities warn rural Māori most at risk

14 Nov 05:24 PM

However, this was not always the case in other sectors, Seymour said.

"But let's be realistic. They've just had to put the firefighters back two weeks because too many of them aren't vaccinated to have a secure fire service."

He said Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern should look to Denmark for inspiration on how to keep people safe from Covid-19.

"They've got an app where you have to show that you're either tested within the last three days or vaccinated, or actually that you've recently recovered from Covid."

The purpose of the app was to show that someone was safe to others, rather than that they were vaccinated, Seymour said.

He thought Ardern should ask the Prime Minister of Denmark Mette Frederiksen to share the technology.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Jacinda's not picking up the phone."

Listen below:

Meanwhile, Seymour said he'd be in Canterbury on November 21 and would aim to attend Groundswell's "Mother of all Protests".

"We'll certainly be there with the Act bus, wherever we join it and offering our support."

While the Government had been "contemptuous" of New Zealand's farmers, Seymour believed city people would also turn up to the protest.

"I would say that the government's done one thing. They've actually managed to unite rural and urban New Zealand.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"I actually get a better reception as an Aucklander out around the sticks than ever before.

"It's rural and urban united against Government and I don't think that's the worst thing."

Also in today's interview: Seymour discussed Judith Collin's leadership chances with the National Party.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from The Country

The Country

One dead, three injured in Central Otago ATV accident

20 Jun 02:29 AM
The Country

Tonnes of promise: Angus Bull Week set to make millions

20 Jun 12:00 AM
Premium
The Country

50 years on the ice: How an Olympic gold medal kickstarted a couple's business

19 Jun 11:00 PM

Jono and Ben brew up a tea-fuelled adventure in Sri Lanka

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from The Country

 One dead, three injured in Central Otago ATV accident

One dead, three injured in Central Otago ATV accident

20 Jun 02:29 AM

One adult died at the scene and three people suffered minor to moderate injuries.

Tonnes of promise: Angus Bull Week set to make millions

Tonnes of promise: Angus Bull Week set to make millions

20 Jun 12:00 AM
Premium
50 years on the ice: How an Olympic gold medal kickstarted a couple's business

50 years on the ice: How an Olympic gold medal kickstarted a couple's business

19 Jun 11:00 PM
Why a 'cute' pet is now included in a pest management plan

Why a 'cute' pet is now included in a pest management plan

19 Jun 10:00 PM
Help for those helping hardest-hit
sponsored

Help for those helping hardest-hit

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP