Friday, 16th September, 2022
Dear Jacinda Ardern and the New Zealand Government
The Taupō Business Chamber exists to support business growth and vitality throughout the Taupō region. We represent 220 members who employ the full time equivalent of over 1,600 staff. Our members cover a wide range of sectors such as tourism, trade, financial services, retail, primary industries, education, plus business to business services.
While we understand the significance of marking and remembering the long service of Queen Elizabeth II, who was such a tireless, dedicated servant to her people – should we be remembering her by making New Zealand businesses suffer the consequences?
This Public Holiday will impose significant operating costs, including wage increases if businesses choose to open or unrecoverable costs and loss of profits for those who close for the day. For many it is an impossible choice to face.
It is a huge unknown given the short notice, if these costs for all businesses will be able to be recouped due to increased trading even if surcharges are added, are people going to be traveling to our region and will businesses be able to reap the benefit without prior planning?
With everything businesses have been asked to do in the past 2-3 years, including but not limited to, supporting staff through a pandemic and the rising cost of living and staffing shortages, the adverse effects of this Public Holiday on New Zealand businesses trying to survive in a post COVID19 environment appears to have had little consideration or care from the New Zealand Government.”
We would like to see businesses provided financial support to help elevate some of the losses suffered by this short-notice Public Holiday. The government needs to look at the bigger picture and stop wasting hard-working business owners money.
Kind Regards
Amy Penn
President
Taupō Businesss Chamber
