3. Question No. 3—FinanceHon PAUL GOLDSMITH (National) to the Minister of FinanceQuestion No. 3—Finance3. Hon PAUL GOLDSMITH (National) to the Minister of Finance: What is the Treasury's best estimate of job losses from being at level 2 as opposed to level 1?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON (Minister of Finance): I'm advised that that would depend on the time spent at each level and other factors such as the global economic environment and the level of domestic activity under the different alert levels. Treasury's central Budget forecasts assume that the country would be at level 4 for a month level 3 for a month and then either levels 2 or 1 for the remainder of the year to March 2021. Treasury assumed growth in employment—i.e. a net increase in jobs—from the start of the September quarter beginning 1 July. This is a period in which Treasury assumes the country is either at level 2 or level 1. Therefore employment growth is expected under both levels 2 and level 1. Hon Paul Goldsmith: Can he understand the anger of small-business people seeing their businesses taken closer to the edge every day they remain under restriction when the general public including the Prime Minister and her selfies seem to have moved on?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: I don't know about the end of that question but I share the view of most New Zealanders that we should do this job once and do it right.Hon Paul Goldsmith: Can he understand the frustrations of AJ owner of Novelty restaurant in Botany who normally operates with 100 patrons but under level 2 can only operate with 30 to 40 patrons and who said today Every day we stay at level 2 it really threatens the very survivability of the business"?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: I understand the frustration of many New Zealanders that COVID-19 has arrived and had such a massive impact on our society and our economy. But I also believe—and I think I've seen survey work to back this up—that New Zealanders back the idea of doing this job once and doing it right. I invite the member to look around the world at other countries who have not had the success New Zealanders have who face many many months of restrictions. We've done well. We've just got to finish the job.Hon Paul Goldsmith: Rather than continually congratulating himself and his Government would he not do better to acknowledge that as one of the most isolated countries in the world with a small sparsely spread and relatively young population New Zealand should have led the world in getting on top of the virus and we have? Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: Well there are certain geographical advantages in New Zealand but I think the member does a disservice to the 5 million New Zealanders who sacrificed a great deal to get us to the position we're in. We should be proud of New Zealanders' efforts not belittling of them.Rt Hon Winston Peters: Could I ask the finance Minister that if this is as was just posed a relatively young country why would they be wanting to put the retirement age up?SPEAKER: Order! Order! It's just too tangential.Hon Paul Goldsmith: Why can businesses not return to normal operations without current restrictions when the Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield has said there is "no evidence of community transmission in New Zealand"?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: This matter has just been covered by the Prime Minister in answering the Leader of the Opposition so I invite the member to share their questions with each other in the future. But it would be fair to say that that is not an accurate representation of the views of the director-general. Hon Paul Goldsmith: Why were 4000 people able to gather to protest without any social distancing on Monday yet businesses are being forced to abide by strict social distancing rules and gathering restrictions which are pushing many of them to the brink?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: It's a fairly basic rule of life that one person breaking the rules doesn't justify it for everybody else."