ETHAN ROGACION (HE/HIM)
I love an overpriced coffee, don’t you? Strolling down Lambton Quay, oat flat white in hand, trying not to spill it while navigating a maze of suit-wearing Business Folk. It’s a sight Public Service Minister Nicola Willis seems eager to revive.
On the 23rd of September, Willis announced that working from home should no longer be the norm for public servants. Sure, remote work has its perks—increased productivity, less commuting—but Willis insists it’s time to get back to the office, partly to save the city’s struggling cafés. That is a distraction on two fronts.
On one hand, as the Opposition has pointed out, this doesn’t solve the fact that the Government’s programme of cuts still lingers over the city’s economy. But, perhaps more saliently, our real challenges—crumbling infrastructure, overdue earthquake repairs, and gutted arts funding—are being sidelined. And, let’s not forget, all of this is happening in the context of a global financial crisis, rising national inflation and the cost of living crisis.
Wellington isn’t suffering because a few policy analysts are logging in from home. It’s suffering from years of underfunding and short-term fixes. The central library has been closed for years, critical infrastructure projects remain in limbo, and housing affordability is a pipe dream. And yet, instead of addressing these foundational issues, the Government is fixated on how many public servants are buying their flat whites on Lambton Quay.
So, will this move save those ailing cafés? Maybe. But if we’re serious about Wellington’s future, it’ll take more than dragging people back to desks. It’ll take investment, vision, and a willingness to tackle bigger issues head-on.