Last week, DownToEarth Kiwi showed how a policy could be simply designed to end the rationing of Kiwis who wish to return to their homeland. This week, the government is beginning to admit that the current system is unraveling.
Incredibly, some expats returning home are being put up in five star hotels in central Auckland whereas others in way less fancy accommodation. Under a web-based user-pays booking system, wealthier people could self-select into paying for more expensive rooms in a location of their choice. The funds which the government saved from such a scheme could be used to grant fixed rebates to all, as well as to set up more quarantine facilities. As a result, less well off Kiwis who chose the cheaper rooms would end up paying very little. Their rooms would become affordable. And more people could return home.
Contrary to what our mainstream media outlets are claiming, this kind of system would not be too complex to administer since it does not involve means testing. The government has just acknowledged that the present system is "a massive expense currently being footed by the taxpayer. Mr Hipkins says that's not going to last":