Hon STUART NASH: On Monday morning, the Employers and Manufacturers Association chief executive said that border crossings were easier for businesses as a result of this new system. He said that it was a better system than the one used during the Auckland 2020 lockdown and it was welcomed by thousands of businesses. The number of exemptions granted under the manual system used last year was around 6,000 workers, or one-quarter of those approved this time. 