Weekly Catchup w/ The Green Party's Ricardo Menendez-March: 4 December, 2024

Last week, the first phase of the royal commission of inquiry into New Zealand’s covid response was released to the public.

The report looked at the lockdowns, the border response and vaccine mandates and made 39 recommendations on how New Zealand could plan for future infectious disease outbreaks more effectively.

The inquiry concluded that New Zealand’s COVID-19 response began successfully, bringing our fatality rates to among the lowest in the world. However, the report also said that many amongst the general public had concerns regarding the lockdowns and vaccine safety, and that recent job cuts at Te Whatu Ora - Health New Zealand, would reduce New Zealand’s preparedness for future pandemics.

For their weekly catchup, Oto spoke to the Green Party’s Ricardo Menendez-March about the party's thoughts on the COVID-19 Response Inquiry.

They also talked about a new initiative by the government to get people of the jobseeker benefit and into work, as well as a directive by Waka Kotahi - The New Zealand Transport Agency, to increase public transport fares.