Tamati Coffey Labour List MP

Here in Rotorua, we've been through a lot together in the past few years. We've stayed home, made sacrifices, and changed our everyday lives to control COVID. And we've suffered all the problems of housing the homeless! It certainly hasn't been easy but we've pulled together – now we're in a position to move forward with greater confidence and certainty.

Our Labour Government has removed the COVID-19 Protection Framework, commonly known as the traffic light system. Mask wearing requirements have been removed, except in healthcare and aged care settings. We've also changed the requirements around isolation, so it's now only people who test positive that need to isolate.

For the first time since 2020, Rotorua can look forward to summer with certainty, a summer where events won't be cancelled because of COVID and our borders are fully open. This is great news for families and friends and it will make a real difference for local tourism and hospitality businesses.

Our economy is set to recover faster from the pandemic that it did from the Global Financial Crisis – we've got near record low unemployment, wages outstripping inflation, low debt and record exports.

However, there's no question that it's been a very difficult few years for Rotorua. Moving on safely from the traffic light system and welcoming back the world is going to help to drive greater economic activity.

This is an exciting step for Rotorua, and it's taken a team effort to get to this point. So thank you for your hard work and sacrifices over the past few years. These efforts have made a real difference.