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Otago Daily Times
24-07-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Passionate, divided response to assessment of PM's legacy unexpected
Sir Ian Taylor reflects on his recent open letters. If I had any doubts of the power of the brand that has been built around Dame Jacinda Ardern, they were well and truly put to rest following my open letter that featured in a number of publications recently. This was not a letter I had written lightly. Since Dame Jacinda had made the call to leave New Zealand to take up residency in the United States, I hadn't written a single article about her, or the choices she had made. My focus remained here, in the country she left behind. But then Dame Jacinda returned to the country on part of a world tour promoting her memoir. Her visit coincided with the Covid Royal Commission I had presented to a couple of weeks earlier. I had an opinion on the timing of that promotional tour and took the opportunity to share it. Of course, I expected feedback. What I had not expected was that the open letter would become one of the most read and commented I have ever written. The responses were passionate, divided and many were simply angry that I had questioned a legacy that I believed was built off the back of the sacrifices that had been made by an entire nation, rather than a single person. A person who had the undeniable skills to define the message of who we were as a nation, but it was our message none the less. The response on social media was also extraordinary, the second-largest I've ever received. Fittingly, the most viewed post remains one from the pandemic, acknowledging the selfless decision of three of our team members made five hours prior to the second lockdown. When government officials ruled their work in our Dunedin-based studio as "non-essential", barring them from travelling from their place of residence to our deserted office, they made a call. They shifted their place of residence — from their flat to our office. That act, technically compliant, entirely safe, and essential to our ongoing business, exposed the flaws in what we were being told daily from "the single source of truth". To save lives we had to put people's livelihoods on hold. And then, something special happened. Dunedin residents heard what they were doing and began dropping meals at the door. Others took their laundry. He waka eke noa, we truly were all in this together and kindness flowed naturally from ordinary people. But what struck me most was that more than a year had passed since the first lockdown and this second "short, sharp" version that eventually extended to more than 100 days in Auckland, costing the country more than $8billion and upending countless lives. This was when I started my open letters to the prime minister. They weren't aggressive, they weren't "whingy," they were a genuine offer of help. While the response from government was almost non-existent, an organisation called The Cross Sector Border Group contacted me. This group was made up of business leaders, health specialists, scientists, hotel operators, logistical experts, tourism organisations and health technology companies. It was this group that backed my "151 Off The Bench Self-isolation Trial". A trial designed to explore how we might get people in and out of New Zealand safely, using technologies that had been overlooked by the government. The Royal Commission has all the information and evidence from that trial, and it will be up to them to decide what, if anything, can be learned from it. As an island nation, at the bottom of the world, we had the advantage of closing our borders early in the pandemic, a move that drew global praise and made our prime minister a celebrated figure of calm kindness. What's overlooked is that other Pacific Island nations did even better. Samoa kept Covid out for 21 months after New Zealand's first case, Tonga for 20, and the Cook Islands for almost two years. Some may argue we can't compare New Zealand to smaller Pacific nations, but we're a small nation too. Just 5million people, no land borders. We had everything working in our favour: geography, control and time. Those advantages remain, and they are our greatest assets in any future crisis. We should be looking at how we use them to do what New Zealanders do the best. Think outside the box. After the first lockdown we sat on our laurels. Let's not do that again. Empathy should never be a substitute for strategy. While Dame Jacinda earned praise abroad, at home we were left waiting. Waiting between lockdowns, between waves, between decisions. There was no real plan, so when Covid returned, it found a country exhausted, divided and unprepared. That division wasn't caused by the virus; it was caused by a vacuum. It's a division that clearly remains today, long after Dame Jacinda has left the building. If we are going to come together as a country with a strategy for a potential new pandemic, then we must be willing to talk honestly about what went wrong, why it went wrong and how we ensure that next time there is more than a "single source of truth" at the table. If the past few years taught us anything, it's that pandemic planning is too important to be left to politics. This isn't about left or right. It's about the right way of doing things. We need a plan shaped by expertise, not headlines. Science, health, logistics and business all working together. The Cross Sector Border Group showed what's possible when politics steps back and people step up. Maybe that's where we start. All rowing the waka in the same direction. Let's do this. Now. ■Sir Ian Taylor is founder and managing director of Animation Research Ltd.
Otago Daily Times
08-07-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Not-so-secret reply to . . . Steve Braunias
Steve Braunias. Photo: supplied Dear Steve, How are you? Good, I hope. Here I am on a train to Paris, staring at your "Secret open letter of ... Sir Ian Taylor," which is staring right back at me. I think I'll be the one to blink first. You may be wondering why I'm on a train instead of a plane. Silly me! I thought de Gare meant airport in French. At least there's a seat on the train ... and I can see my bag. SUNDAY Dear Steve, Sorry I'm a bit late getting back to you. I got distracted by the obese conspiracy theorist sitting beside me on the train yesterday. All he wanted to talk about was the All Blacks. I tried to change the subject to Jacinda, but he was having none of it. "Sacre bleu," he said, "that was our C team." I said, "You need to have more empathy." He ordered another wine. MONDAY Dear Steve, I'm finding this open letter harder to write than the ones I send Jacinda, because I suspect you might actually read it. I made a coffee to steady myself. It was terrible. I blame you. I haven't touched coffee in 20 years, but your writing is so persuasive I couldn't help myself. TUESDAY Dear Steve, I'm at my desk in my Airbnb in Paris. My thoughts are still somewhere over New Delhi, wondering how I ended up on a flight to India when I was meant to be heading to Dubai to see if Jacinda's picture was still on the Burj Khalifa. It reminded me how easy it was to end up in odd places trying to get home to New Zealand during those Covid lockdowns. That thought came back to me when I saw her cover photo at Auckland Airport. Not that I blame Jacinda, of course. I probably just forgot where I was going. I did turn 75 last week and my mind isn't what it used to be. WEDNESDAY Dear Steve, Do you ever get mental blocks when you write? I don't, usually, but today I'm stuck in the middle of my own thoughts. Not the animated ones that come with being founder and managing director of Animation Research Ltd. More wedged between admiration for your craft and mild resentment that you read my mind better than I do. You gave me a whole new perspective on my letter to Jacinda, one I simply failed to see. I still have no idea how I missed it. THURSDAY Dear Steve, On reflection, rather than another open letter, I think I owe you a drink, or at least a half-decent coffee, assuming we can find one between Tihar Prison and the Koru Lounge. I might even bring A Different Kind of Power. We can put it on the table between us and stare at the cover together. Sometimes it's better to look at the photo than open the pages. FRIDAY Dear Steve, Not sure if I've mentioned it before, but I'm a huge fan of your writing. I never imagined I'd end up the subject of one of your columns. Thank you for your piece. Thank you for the mischief. Long may you keep us honest, and just uncomfortable enough. Yours, not so secretly, Sir Ian Taylor PS. Do you think it was possible that when Jacinda said "Be Kind" she meant that we had to be kind to her for the decisions she was making otherwise we weren't part of the Team of 5 Million, and we would be thrown off the waka? I remember feeling quite wet during Covid. By Sir Ian Taylor
The Spinoff
07-07-2025
- Politics
- The Spinoff
An open letter to Jacinda Ardern on open letters to Jacinda Ardern
Jacinda Ardern, I have a problem: people keep writing open letters to Jacinda Ardern. It has to stop. Hello Jacinda Ardern, Thank you for reading this letter, which I have sent in a genuine effort to contact you, and not as a hackneyed vehicle for a tedious, self-aggrandising sermon relitigating some bugbear from years ago. Anyway, I remember years ago, New Zealanders aired their disagreements the traditional way, by either getting drunk and arguing with each other or getting drunk and fighting. If the dispute was of national significance, it could be resolved through warring newspaper opinion columns, or in the case of Winston Peters, by calling someone a cuck in parliament. I yearn bitterly for those more sweet, innocent days. Back then I could go weeks or even years without seeing some minor gripe or whinge escalated into an open letter to the former prime minister of New Zealand, the Rt Honorable Dame Jacinda Ardern. Jacinda, hi, I'm sending this letter to see if you can do something about the scourge of people sending you open letters all the time. It didn't start with you, of course. Writers have been penning open letters for decades. Who could forget Paul's open letter to the Ephesians, Jacinda Ardern's open letter to MediaWorks chief executive Mark Weldon, or more recently, Spinoff fool's open letter to the Waitangi Dildo? But over the last six or so years, these missives have increasingly been addressed to one person alone. Open letters to Jacinda Ardern have been published by The Spinoff, The 13th Floor, the Herald, the Country, the Outdoors Party, the Taxpayers Union, and The Spinoff again. Whenever a New Zealander has a quibble or setback, their first port of call is to contact the nearest media outlet and fling a letter out in the general direction of our former prime minister. In 2021, Stuff published an open letter to Jacinda Ardern from a woman complaining she'd been forced to put her 'bi-hemispheral life' on hold and miss 'pea season' over the trifling matter of a global pandemic. Just last week, Sir Ian Taylor published what scientists estimate to be his 73rd open letter to Jacinda Ardern complaining that seeing your book in the airport made him spend 22 hours obsessing about the Covid response, which was definitely justified, your fault, and not cause for self-reflection. Enough! Jacinda, I know you're reading this. There has to be a way to put a stop to the madness. Maybe set up a PO Box where people can send their gripes about climate change and vaccines without subjecting the rest of us to their grousing. Lobby the government for a bespoke, financially crippling open letter tax. If all that fails, maybe quit politics and move to the US, where surely only the most desperate or deluded would continue to write you open letters. Dame Jacinda Ardern, I expect quick action over this issue. This letter is my attempt to effect meaningful change for our great nation. If it wasn't, you could be forgiven for thinking I'm shoehorning your name into the world's most parasocial media format for the sake of attention and clicks, and cloying, folksy, first-person sentences like this one are kind of a bit disingenuous and patronising. But we both know that's not the case, eh mate. How's the fam? Let's catch up soon to talk progress on this one.
Newsroom
07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Newsroom
Ian Taylor's open letter to Steve Braunias
There was a lot of laughter last night as a friend read 'The Secret Open Letter of Sir Ian Taylor' by Steve Braunias out loud to the entire dinner party. I thought it might be a bit of fun to reply. SATURDAY Dear Steve, How are you? Good, I hope. Here I am on a train to Paris, staring at your 'Secret open letter of Sir Ian Taylor,' which is staring right back at me. I think I'll be the one to blink first. You may be wondering why I'm on a train instead of a plane. Silly me! I thought de Gare meant airport in French. At least there's a seat on the train … and I can see my bag. SUNDAY Dear Steve, Sorry I'm a bit late getting back to you. I got distracted by the obese conspiracy theorist sitting beside me on the train yesterday. All he wanted to talk about was the All Blacks. I tried to change the subject to Jacinda, but he was having none of it. 'Sacre bleu,' he said, 'that was our C team'. I said, 'You need to have more empathy.' He ordered another wine. MONDAY Dear Steve, I'm finding this open letter harder to write than the ones I send Jacinda, because I suspect you might actually read it. I made a coffee to steady myself. It was terrible. I blame you. I haven't touched coffee in 20 years, but your writing is so persuasive I couldn't help myself. TUESDAY Dear Steve, I'm at my desk in my Airbnb in Paris. My thoughts are still somewhere over New Delhi, wondering how I ended up on a flight to India when I was meant to be heading to Dubai to see if Jacinda's picture was still on the Burj Khalifa. It reminded me how easy it was to end up in odd places trying to get home to New Zealand during those Covid lockdowns. That thought came back to me when I saw her cover photo at Auckland Airport. Not that I blame Jacinda, of course. I probably just forgot where I was going. I did turn 75 last week and my mind isn't what it used to be. WEDNESDAY Dear Steve, Do you ever get mental blocks when you write? I don't, usually, but today I'm stuck in the middle of my own thoughts. Not the animated ones that come with being founder and managing director of Animation Research Ltd. More wedged between admiration for your craft and mild resentment that you read my mind better than I do. You gave me a whole new perspective on my letter to Jacinda, one I simply failed to see. I still have no idea how I missed it. THURSDAY Dear Steve, On reflection, rather than another open letter, I think I owe you a drink, or at least a half-decent coffee, assuming we can find one between Tihar Prison and the Koru Lounge. I might even bring A Different Kind of Power. We can put it on the table between us and stare at the cover together. Sometimes it's better to look at the photo than open the pages. FRIDAY Dear Steve, Not sure if I've mentioned it before, but I'm a huge fan of your writing. I never imagined I'd end up the subject of one of your columns. Thank you for your piece. Thank you for the mischief. Long may you keep us honest, and just uncomfortable enough. Yours, not so secretly, Sir Ian Taylor PS. Do you think it was possible that when Jacinda said 'Be Kind' she meant that we had to be kind to her for the decisions she was making otherwise we weren't part of the Team of 5 Million, and we would be thrown off the waka? I remember feeling quite wet during Covid.
Otago Daily Times
07-07-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Letters to the Editor: Ardern, AI and Dunstan health
Today's Letters to the Editor from readers include praise for Dame Jacinda Ardern, surrendering to AI and Dunstan health. Respect nosedived after reading Sir Ian's letter My huge respect for Sir Ian Taylor took a nosedive when I read his article on Jacinda Ardern's legacy (ODT 4.7.25). Triggered by a photo of the prime minister in a designer outfit he suddenly decides she has given up kindness in favour of ''brand management''. He thinks her book is written for that purpose. This is not only piffle, it is baseless vilification. Sir Ian seems now convinced that Jacinda was heartless in trying to save the country from an international plague. He blames her for causing pain to the many who missed out on important events because of the lockdown. He claims other means of controlling the border were rejected because they didn't fit ''narrative''. And now he insinuates that the book was written for financial gain and self-glorification. Did he read it? The book, written from the heart, simply lays out the experiences that shaped Jacinda's socialist beliefs and the pressures that led her to do what she thought best for the country - to resign. And it was partly the sniping criticism of her attempts to better the lives of the less fortunate that led to that decision. It is true that Jacinda's ideals and inspirational humanitarianism have been tossed aside by this coalition, but she is not to blame for that. She did her wonderful best. Islay Little Opoho Jacinda Ardern never asked the world to idealise her. Jacinda was doing her job as an effective politician taking advice from our top epidemiologist. New Zealand shut down for good reason. We didn't ask thousands of people from around the world to come here, putting us at knew they would be isolated. The wonderful healthcare workers made sure nobody was alone when they passed. The internet made it easy for everyone to keep in touch. Jacinda was and is a special person. After reading her book A Different Kind Of Power I understand where her empathy comes from. We have yet to see any government able to stop the vitriol people seek on social media. Mary Robertson Ocean View Congratulations Sir Ian Taylor for writing the chapter which Jacinda Ardern omitted. However Sir Ian, you should also have reminded readers about how hard you tried to arrange for the importation of Rat tests and were turned down. These had been thoroughly tested overseas and were so badly needed. Maybe Jacinda does not remember some of those important facts, but hopefully she does now realise that so many hardworking people are still suffering following the unnecessary stringent laws which she served on New Zealand. Perhaps Jacinda has a sequel to write soon and maybe, Sir Ian, you can assist her with her memories. Alex Armstrong North East Valley I take issue with Sir Ian Taylor's letter to Dame Jacinda Ardern. Findings about the management of Covid 19 have pointed out what could have been done much better, even though it was done under unpredictable circumstances and immense pressure. So, why now this diatribe? Some possible reasons present themselves. 1. A woman should be perfect and if not, she offends her devotee; men can appear in the media, but heaven forbid a female politician appearing in Vogue; A selective memory has forgotten the misogyny and death threats Ardern had to endure. Sir Ian's letter strikes me as unusually cruel at a time when Dame Jacinda might need some generosity of spirit and a welcome home. There are 20,000 of us who might not have been here to do that if not for her. Leoni Schmidt Dunedin On surrendering all human endeavour to AI AI frees us from mundane, time-consuming tasks, and we lap it up. Yet is it actually freedom that we're drinking? It saves us summarising that report ourselves, and churns out a ''personalised'' farewell song for a friend. When trying to write, we are now offered the most frequently used next word. If we don't flex our creative muscles, won't we lose them? For what cause are we surrendering the training ground of human intellect and art? On June 4, RNZ reported that in China, AI is being used to find every online reference to the Tiananmen Square massacre, to delete them. At a time in global history when tech, big money, and overreaching governments are more closely wedded than ever, can we afford to give up our own voices? The reply to this might be, ''Sorry love, that horse has bolted.'' But if your kids are on that horse - along with the future of humanity as a free, creative force - then it might yet be worth trying to run it down. Anna Yeoman Alexandra Dunstan offers public health I write to correct the unfortunate error in your correspondent Bob Scott's letter (4.7.25). Mr Scott states that ''Dunstan Hospital is a private facility''. Dunstan Hospital is owned by Central Otago Health Services Incorporated on behalf of the community and it is run by Central Otago Health Services Ltd, a not-for-profit charitable company. It provides public health services at no cost - the exception to that is its evening and overnight primary care service which is providing a GP-style service out of hours following the withdrawal of most local GPs from providing these services some years back. He is correct that this is charged for - as it would be if the patient attended their GP were they still providing the service - but that would be the case with any primary care after hours service anywhere. Dunstan operates a 24-bed hospital that manages 93% of medical admissions from the Central Otago/Wanaka community - only 7% require to go on to Dunedin. These services are free. We provide oncology infusion services for the region, district nursing, radiology, blood testing, physiotherapy and rehab services, and a range of other public services. As they would be in any state owned hospital there is no charge for these services. We receive extraordinary support from our local community in terms of donations and fundraising and this allows us to do things for which we are not funded by the Crown. For example, we are funded to deliver three days a week of oncology infusions but provide four. I do not wish to take away from Mr Scott any of the many other points he makes regarding the relative underservicing, close to home, of a rapidly growing region. The absence of a walk-in ED facility in the region is a significant public concern. But I would hate the public to think that Dunstan is anything other than a public health service. Richard Thomson Chairman, Central Otago Health Services Ltd Address Letters to the Editor to: Otago Daily Times, PO Box 517, 52-56 Lower Stuart St, Dunedin. Email: editor@
