Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has announced that
rural and ethnic media outlets will be re-classified as
essential services, if they are able to show they serve
either a hard to reach or non-English speaking audience and
follow health and safety best practice, to minimise the risk
of spreading COVID-19.
Free Speech
Coalition spokesman David Farrar says, “We are very
pleased to see the Government acknowledge its initial ruling
on the scope of essential media was wrong. The wider
definition will allow difficult to reach, and non-English
speaking communities to continue to receive news which they
would otherwise have been cut-off from.”
“This
takes away some the immediate urgency of our judicial review
but we’re not ruling it out. We need to go back our donors
and supporters, review the decision, and speak to our
lawyers before we make
decision.”
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