“The Prime Minister is treating New Zealanders like kids. If you want a Rapid Antigen Test, you have to be a ‘critical worker,’ otherwise you have to stay in isolation for 14 days,“ says ACT Leader David Seymour.

“All over the world, people can go to their supermarket or pharmacy and buy a test to monitor their own health. Here in New Zealand, we have enough on shore for one each, so the Government is tightly rationing them.

“The Government is not ready and has not ordered the tests on time, but it has also banned anyone else from importing them. Now the Government has imposed draconian controls on who can access Rapid Antigen Tests.

“You can’t get out of isolation until you have waited 14 days or had a negative test. But there are not enough tests so only ‘critical workers’ can get out of isolation with a negative antigen test. The obvious result is that people will not get tested at all, knowing that a positive test effectively imprisons them.

“The Government has managed to deliver the worst of all worlds. Its approach will do little to slow the spread of Omicron, but it will ensure that the borders stay closed, event promoters go broke, and business suffers while people stay home in a climate of fear.”

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