If cities were listed Wellington’s shares would have been as jolted as Infratil’s by the news of Lloyd’s leukaemia.

His selfless patronage of music, other arts, childrens’ and elite sport is well known. though the spread and scale of his passionate interests may never be fully appreciated. 

Less well understood is what Wellington would be like if Infratil had not remained headquartered here as other head offices went, or if he had not helped to prevent the NZX being sold to Australia. Wellington retains a leavening of non-state patrons. Its international reputation as a vibrant place to live, and a centre for the arts, theatre survives because artists do not yet have to deal with a monolithic establishment..

The quality of our public service is sustained partly because there are still Wellingtonians who know how wealth is made. Public and private sector  people meet and challenge each others’ assumptions.

Lloyd shares the common business resentment of wilfully ignorant political decision-making. He knows the frustration of dealing with people who neither know nor care how what determines our competitive wealth as a nation, but  have firm plans for spreading it around their circles. Yet he has not disdained politics and headed to Auckland, or further afield.

Instead, he has thrown himself into being a positive force for Wellington and New Zealand. His flag campaign may have seemed quixotic, but he has learned much from it. It has been renewed because he understands the power of symbols and vision.

Many people will want to show they’re thinking of him. They’ll be willling him to beat this illness. 

I suspect that practical public support for some of his visions for New Zealand would be far more heartening to him than a kind message.