NZ National Party Leader pushes for Pacific Islands travel bubble Featured
NZ National Party Leader Judith Collins
21 March, 2021. Judith Collins is urging the Government to open its borders to the Pacific Islands, saying it's time New Zealand stopped being so "paternalistic".
The National Party has been pushing for the Government to establish quarantine-free travel between Australia and New Zealand for months - and now Collins has added the Pacific Islands to the plea.
"Fiji hasn't had a community case in around a year - Samoa and Tonga have never had one," she told Newshub Nation on Saturday.
"We need to support our Pacific neighbours with tourism because they have just gone through devastating economic times."
RNZ reports Samoa's economy collapsed by 8.6 percent in the 12 months to the end of September 2020.
The loss in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was heavily impacted by a complete loss of income to the country's tourism sector.
"We have to be realistic about it," said Collins.
"These economies have nothing except tourism and we're blocking them off."
- NewsHub
