The global effects of Covid-19 are putting real pressure on the New Zealand supply chain, economist Cameron Bagrie told the road freight transport industry this week.

Covid-19 meant no industry conference this year, so the Road Transport Forum invited Cameron to give us one of his popular industry updates via Zoom.

There was good news and bad news, and Cameron is pretty good at looking at how you can turn the bad news into good news. But there is no escaping there is pain ahead as we watch parts of Europe and the UK shut down again for a second autumn/winter wave of Covid.

Like the year 2020 generally, it felt like New Zealanders just wanted the election to be over and done with. That probably goes for the politicians too!

A weariness had set in over recent weeks, possibly because most people felt the overall result was ‘baked in’ and a forgone conclusion. Most of us knew there would be a Labour government in some form. The questions remained though, would they need the Greens and would Winston sneak over the line?

It’s fair to say that 2020 has not been a great year for many people, with Covid-19 bringing fear, anxiety and lockdowns around the world.

So, it’s good to know there are some local heroes out there focused on good works and keeping us safe.

And after this annus horribilis, it was good to have something to celebrate last week when I presented the award for the Castrol Truck Driver Hero to Deane Rodgers at an event in Cromwell in the South Island (pictured above).

A week out from the general election the Road Transport Forum (RTF) has made its final plea for people to be informed before stepping into the ballot box to vote on the cannabis referendum.

I spoke about some of the unintended consequences of legalising recreational cannabis for safety sensitive industries at a road freight transport industry breakfast event in Auckland yesterday titled, Clear the Haze.

The new standing joke in the Road Transport Forum’s (RTF) office is that we will receive an email from Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) saying, “Dear Nick, we have reduced the speed limit across all State Highways in New Zealand to 80km.”

Of course, they wouldn’t be this direct because it would create massive outrage. Instead, it is happening by stealth, empowered by the politics of the Road to Zero policy which has been directed by Transport Associate Minister Julie Anne Genter.

It’s election season and the promises are rolling in. Whoever the public of New Zealand vote in to lead us for the next three years, they must demand delivery on those promises.

We are facing the most difficult three years ahead in many of our lifetimes – except those who have lived through wars. Covid-19 continues to baffle experts on how to live with it, or vaccinate against it. Meanwhile, countries such as New Zealand become increasingly isolated with closed borders, unemployment levels will leave scars for years to come, those who are hanging onto employment are stressed to the max, and money without interest is becoming increasingly worthless.

Covid-19 has changed the way we do business and given many people pause to think about the work they do.

School leavers are looking at an uncertain future of work, and many of those who were in work have seen the industries they worked in disappear and their jobs go with it. Those in work also face uncertainty and might be thinking about training and gaining qualifications to secure their place.

It was interesting to see the Government’s response to our recent request to spend some of the “shovel ready” Covid-19 cash on urgent road repairs for unsafe roads was to promote rail for moving freight.

Together with the Automobile Association, Association of Consultants and Engineers, Civil Contractors NZ, Employers and Manufacturers Association, and Infrastructure NZ, the RTF has written to Ministers and spoken with their representatives about the dire state of New Zealand roads. This has generated plenty of media and public debate this week, with the six organisations representing a broad range of interests, including private car users.

How do we get out of this mess? Billions of dollars have been spent by the New Zealand Government on Covid-19. That cannot go on for the years it might take to either have a viable vaccine, or to learn to live with this and other epidemics.

We’ve heard a lot from the Government about investing in infrastructure to boost the economy and getting started on “shovel ready” projects to counter rapidly increasing unemployment and financial pain. Big announcements need to be backed by delivery.

A month is a long time in politics and with New Zealand’s general election moved from 19 September to 17 October, we are seeing more of the impacts of the response strategy the Government has adopted to Covid-19.

That response strategy will impact New Zealand’s economy for years to come. I acknowledge New Zealand is not alone in that, but this is New Zealand’s general election and we are voting on the situation here.

We have a Covid-19 resurgence plan they said, and for 102 days New Zealanders breathed a sigh of relief and believed them. Even if they didn’t have a plan, 102 days was long enough to develop one, right?

If the past week is anything to go by, if we have been operating under a plan, I’d hate to see what they call chaos.

Here we are again, staring down the Covid-19 virus while trying to keep businesses and the economy going.

We had hoped the “all of Government” team that responded to the lockdown and alert level changes last time would have learned from that. We believed there was a plan for the inevitable emergence of Covid-19 in the community.