Figures released last week showed a one percent decline in the last quarter, contributing to a largest ever annual fall of 2.9 percent.
Steven Joyce, who served as Minister for Finance under Bill English, told Kerre McIvor that as the financial support dries up, the true cost of lockdown will be revealed.
He says that keeping the borders closed has been a big factor in this decline.
"For the first time ever, we've done this unintentional experiment where we've worked out what happens when we close [New Zealand]. And at the bare minimum, it's five percent of the collective New Zealand income for the year."
Joyce says that reopening the borders and letting people in is not just about tourists, but letting key workers and international students in as well.
"This suggestion we should be able to find all the people we need to do the work we want from internal sources is unrealistic."
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