Cabinet in New Zealand to review Covid settings next week – as it happened

This blog is now closed. You can read more about Jacinda Ardern’s coronavirus lockdown decision here, and the report on today’s earthquakes and tsunami here. Thanks for reading

5 Mar 202122.59 EST

Lockdown to lift in Auckland

Elle Hunt

That’s the end of the press conference.

To recap:

• Auckland will move to alert level 2 at 6am on Sunday, with some exceptions (under the Health Act) for contacts of confirmed cases – or those who might have been exposed to the virus at the gym
• The rest of the country will move to alert level 1 at the same time
  
• Cabinet will review Auckland’s settings next week; any shifts down will happen before the weekend
• There are no new Covid-19 cases in the community or in managed isolation

That concludes our coverage of this really very full day here in New Zealand – happily, with good news.

Thank you for following along with our coverage, and TGIF.

America’s Cup sailing will resume on Wednesday, while cricket, netball and rugby can finally put tickets on sale for their big events on Sunday, Stuff reports.

Ardern says she “absolutely” felt the first earthquake. Her first thought was “Bugger it”, she says.

Kiri Allan chips in: “She sent me a text message to make sure I was going to be doing my job. 2.29am!”

Emergency management minister Kiri Allan is back to talk about the tsunami response. She says the call to cancel the alert was made when it became apparent that “there was no longer a risk to life”.

She’s facing questions about the notification system, specifically the civil-defence text alerts sent to people’s phones. These were received by thousands of people at different times, but Allan says it is not yet known whether this could have been improved upon.

“Those are strictly targeted and have been targeted, again, based on the science available as to those who were most at risk of losing life. That was not meant to be a carte blanche notification to all.”

She says she is by and large satisfied that people knew what to do, as a result of the overall management strategy, but that the government would be “looking to stress-test the system over the next few days”.

Both she and prime minister Jacinda Ardern acknowledge that the first two of the three earthquakes were “disconnected”, one recording off the East Coast of the North Island and one close to the Kermadec islands – requiring different responses.

Allan says there has been no reports of concerning or substantive damage as a result of the earthquakes. Now that the alert has been cancelled government teams can look into it more closely, she says.

Ardern says it was the right decision to lift the three-day lockdown in Auckland earlier in February before reinstating level-three restrictions at the end of the month.

Ardern is asked if she will apologise to Case L, a coronavirus case who says she was not told to self-isolate by the government and that Ardern’s comments about her case led to her to be bullied on social media.

Ardern says now (as she has earlier) that she will not apologise but that it was never her intention to create a pile-on.

Another exception: on Sunday, church services can proceed only with fewer than 100 attendees.

Ardern interrupts questioning of Bloomfield over the invocation of the Health Act to say that the requirements of New Zealanders under its coronavirus response “are by and large very well understood”.

She says she does not believe anyone who broke level-three restrictions set out to do wrong, and that she has not seen any benefit in continuing a “back-and-forth” over individual cases over this past week.

Ardern adds that there have always been breaches of New Zealand’s lockdown. “By and large the country has done exceptionally well – but we’ve never had an experience that’s been perfect.”

There are some exceptions to the restriction levels lifting, says director-general of health Ashley Bloomfield.

People who attended the City Fitness gym (the site of the most recent significant exposure event, a week ago) and those who have been told by Auckland regional public health teams that they are a casual-plus, close or casual contact of a confirmed case.

These people are required to isolate at their usual home, report for and undergo medical testing at a time and place specified by a medical officer of health, and remain isolated until they receive further information.

Bloomfield clarifies this is a “specific legal requirement”, compelling these individuals under section 70 of the Health Act.

Ardern: “We may not be in the devastating position that much of the rest of the world finds itself in, but an elimination strategy can still feel like hard work. It is completely natural to feel fatigued. Covid is hard work for everyone. Thank you for pushing forward once again.”

Ardern says the government’s response has been overly cautious given the unpredictable and highly transmissible nature of the UK variant of coronavirus.

“Level three provided us with an extra layer of security while we addressed the unknowns and reduced the risk.”

Auckland will go to level two at 6am on Sunday. The rest of the country will go to level one at the same time.

Jacinda Ardern begins by pointing to case numbers in France and elsewhere overseas: “I know here in New Zealand we take none of what we have for granted, not least because so many of us know people or have people that we love abroad.”

She says she accepts that New Zealand’s strategy of elimination is difficult for people, from job losses to school camp cancellations. “Covid has taken a toll on so many in so many ways – but it will get better.”

She says she will release a “roadmap” in the coming weeks showing how the immunisation rollout will affect Aotearoa’s Covid response in the next year.

Kiri Allan says the civil defence response to the threat of a tsunami was underway pre-dawn: “I want to say thank you to all of those who did exactly the right thing.”

Jacinda Ardern: “It’s hard not to feel like our country is having a run of bad luck, when you have an earthquake, tsunami and pandemic to contend with all in one day …

“We have had our share of tough moments in this country, but within that we have always been blessed with incredible people who work in our emergency response system.”

Ardern praises the work of emergency management minister Kiri Allan and hands over to her for an update.

Director-general of health Ashley Bloomfield will give an update on the Covid-19 response afterwards.

Ardern is speaking now.