Check in here for the key, verified facts on how New Zealand is dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic.
1:00pm Tuesday 9 June - day one at alert level 1
Today is our first day at alert level one, and there are zero new cases, bringing our Covid-free streak to 18 days. “You’ll be pleased to know our numbers remain unchanged,” says Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield.
3:00pm Monday 8 June - day 26 at alert level 2
We will move to level one at midnight tonight.
This means our borders will remain closed but all other restrictions will be lifted. All limits on social distancing, hospitality events and gatherings have been lifted.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says we will now be “one of the most open economies in the world”.
The announcement comes on the same day that we reached zero active cases.
Today is the 75th day we’ve spent at a Covid alert level. It’s our 17th day in a row with no new active cases.
In the last week, 40,000 people have been given a Covid test without a single positive result. It’s been 40 days since we’ve had a case of community transmission, and 22 days since that person left self-isolation.
The Prime Minister says New Zealanders will be able to “do and go wherever you like”, but the government is still asking people to keep a record of their movements.
Businesses will not be required to sign in every person who enters, but they will be asked to keep up contact-tracing QR codes in shop fronts so people can easily record their own movements.
It’s projected our economy will only be 3.8% below normal levels at alert level 1.
The Prime Minister says many businesses will be implementing flexible working arrangements, but where possible she urged workers to return to the CBD to support inner-city businesses.
All public sector workers will be asked to return to their offices, aside from those who are wanting flexible work policies.
“This freedom from restrictions relies heavily on border control and keeping the virus out,” says the Prime Minister.
She says we will “almost certainly” see cases here again, “that is not a sign that we have failed. It is a reality of this virus”.
“If and when this occurs we have to make sure we are prepared.”
“Elimination is not a point in time, it is a sustained effort.”
1:00pm Monday 8 June - day 26 at alert level 2
Our final active case has recovered, meaning there is not a single active case of Covid-19 left in the country.
This is the first time since February 28 that there have been no active Covid cases.
The final case was declared recovered after having no symptoms for 48 hours, and they’re no longer in isolation.
We also remain on our streak of no new daily cases - today is 17 days in a row with no new cases.
“This is really good news for the person concerned, and it’s also something the rest of New Zealand can take heart from,” says Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield.
“Having no active cases for the first time since February 28 is certainly a significant mark in our journey but as we’ve previously said, ongoing vigilance against COVID-19 will continue to be essential."
This means our total number of recovered cases is now 1482.
1:00pm Sunday 7 June - day 25 at alert level 2
Today there are no new cases. It’s been 16 days since our last new case.
There is still one active case, a woman in her 50s in Auckland.
There are no new deaths, or anyone receiving hospital care for Covid.
Yesterday there were 2054 tests completed. There have been 294,048 tests done in total.
1:00pm Saturday 6 June - day 24 at alert level 2
There’s no new cases today, so we’re at 15 days in a row with no new cases.
There is still one active case.
There are no new deaths, or anyone receiving hospital care for Covid.
1:00pm Friday 5 June - day 23 at alert level 2
We’ve hit two weeks in a row with no new cases, our total case number is 1504.
There is still one active case.
There are no new deaths, or anyone receiving hospital care for Covid.
Seven of the significant clusters have now closed. There are eight clusters still open. A cluster is closed when it’s been 28 days since all cases have finished isolation.
1:00pm Thursday 4 June - day 22 at alert level 2
Today is our 13th day in a row with no new cases.
This means our total case number is still 1504.
There is still only one active case of Covid-19 in the entire country.
There are no new deaths, or anyone receiving hospital care for Covid.
Director-General of Health Dr Ashely Bloomfield said with New Zealand’s success at nearly eradicating Covid, it’s easy for us “to forget what’s happening internationally.”
Only three days ago was the highest number of new daily cases since the pandemic began, with 124,139 new cases in one day.
Worldwide there have been nearly 6.3 million confirmed cases, and 380,000 deaths.
1:00pm Wednesday 3 June - day 21 at alert level 2
Now we’re at 12 days in a row with no new cases.
This means our total case number is still 1504.
There is still only one active case of Covid-19 in the entire country.
There are no new deaths, or anyone receiving hospital care for Covid.
The NZ COVID-Tracer app has been downloaded 487,000 times.
It’s been used 496,000 times, which means the average person has only used the app about once since downloading it.
Director General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield says 30,000 tests have been done to see if there is any hidden community transmission. These were tests of people with no symptoms, to see if there were any “hidden pockets” of the virus.
Only one positive result was found, a worker at Auckland airport, which was likely linked to overseas travel from a few weeks earlier.
The Prime Minister has given details of what level 1 will look like: all rules and restrictions for businesses will be lifted, with no physical distancing required.
Churches, sport events and concerts can all begin with no restrictions. No physical distancing on planes and public transport will be needed.
The only measure at level 1 will be that strict border control measures will still be in place.
With 100,000 new cases every day worldwide, the Prime Minister says the “only reason we are able to consider a move to alert level 1 is because of our strict border controls.”
Next Monday June 8th she will announce if and when we will move to level 1.
Contact tracing will still be key, and the government is working with event organisers to help develop large-scale contact tracing measures.
Are working with large scale event organisers where contact details are collected in case contract tracing is needed
The Prime Minister says the golden rules of level 1 are:
- If you’re sick, stay home
- If you have cold or flu symptoms, get a Covid test
- Wash your hands
- Sneeze and cough into your elbow and disinfect shared surfaces
- If health authorities tell you to self-isolate you have to do so immediately
- Keep track of where you’ve been and the people you’ve seen. Businesses should help this by displaying the contact tracing QR code
1:00pm Tuesday 2 June - day 20 at alert level 2
Today we’ve hit 11 days in a row with no new cases.
This means our total case number is still 1504.
There is still only one active case of Covid-19 in the entire country.
There are no new deaths, or anyone receiving hospital care for Covid.
1:00pm Monday 1 June - day 19 at alert level 2
There are no new cases today, which means it has been 10 days since our last new case.
Our total case number is still 1504.
1154 of these are confirmed cases, which is the number that we report to the World Health Organisation, and the rest are probable.
There is still only one active case of Covid-19 in the entire country. 1481 people have recovered.
There are no new deaths, or anyone receiving hospital care for Covid.
Yesterday there were 626 tests completed. This lower rate of testing was expected over the long weekend, the Ministry of Health said in a statement. "Lower testing volumes are regularly observed over holiday weekends, and we recognise that this alert level 2 Queens Birthday, people will have been taking the advantage of the renewed ability to travel and enjoy a break within New Zealand."
However, the ministry advised anyone suffering from respiratory systems to seek medical help and get tested. "Testing is free."
There have been 281,609 tests done in total.
1:00pm Sunday 31 May - day 18 at alert level 2
Another day of no new cases today, which puts us at nine days in a row of no new cases.
This means our total case number is still 1504.
1154 of these are confirmed cases, which is the number that we report to the World Health Organisation, and the rest are probable.
There is still only one active case of Covid-19 in the entire country. 1481 people have recovered.
There are no new deaths, or anyone receiving hospital care for Covid.
Yesterday there were 2111 tests completed. There have been 280,983 tests done in total.
1:00pm Saturday 30 May - day 17 at alert level 2
There are no new cases today, so we’re now at eight days in a row of zero new daily cases of Covid-19.
This means our total case number remains at 1504.
1154 of these are confirmed cases, which is the number that we report to the World Health Organisation, and the rest are probable.
There is now only one active case of Covid-19 in the entire country. 1481 people have recovered.
There are no new deaths, or anyone receiving hospital care for Covid.
Yesterday there were 3020 tests completed. There have been 278,872 tests done in total.
1:00pm Friday 29 May - day 16 at alert level 2
There is now only one active case of Covid-19 in the entire country. 1481 people have recovered.
There are no new cases today, so we’re now at a whole week of zero new daily cases of Covid-19.
This means our total case number remains at 1504.
1154 of these are confirmed cases, which is the number that we report to the World Health Organisation, and the rest are probable.
There are no new deaths, or anyone receiving hospital care for Covid.
Yesterday there were 4162 tests completed. There have been 275,852 tests done in total.
1:00pm Thursday 28 May - day 15 at alert level 2
New Zealand has recorded our 22nd death related to Covid-19.
Eileen Hunter (whose family asked that she be named) was in her 90s and was a resident at St Margarets Rest Home in Auckland.
She had been confirmed as having Covid in mid-April but had recovered and been cleared after two negative test results.
Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield says Covid was not listed as the cause of her death on her death certificate.
However, the decision was made to include her death in the overall count of Covid-related deaths, “so that we have got a good idea of the full impact of this condition on our health and wellbeing in New Zealand.”
There are no new cases today, so we’re now at six days in a row with zero cases of Covid-19.
This means our total case number remains at 1504.
1154 of these are confirmed cases, which is the number that we report to the World Health Organisation, and the rest are probable.
There are only 8 active cases left in the country. 1474 people have recovered.
Yesterday there were 4255 tests completed. There have been 271,690 tests done in total.
1:00pm Wednesday 27 May - two weeks at alert level 2
We’re now at five days in a row with no new cases of Covid-19.
This means our total case number remains at 1504.
1154 of these are confirmed cases, which is the number that we report to the World Health Organisation, and the rest are probable.
There are no new deaths, and the final person in hospital has now been discharged. This means we have no people in New Zealand receiving hospital care for Covid.
There are only 21 active cases left in the country. 1462 people have recovered, which is 97% of cases.
Yesterday there were 4279 tests completed. There have been 267,435 tests done in total.
1:00pm Tuesday 26 May - day 13 at alert level 2
For the fourth day in a row there are no new cases of Covid-19.
This means our total case number remains at 1504.
1154 of these are confirmed cases, which is the number that we report to the World Health Organisation, and the rest are probable.
There are no new deaths.
There are only 22 active cases left in the country. 1461 people have recovered, which is 97% of cases.
There is one person in hospital, not in intensive care.
Yesterday there were 1841 tests completed. There have been 263,156 tests done in total.
4:00pm Monday 25 May
From 12 noon this Friday, gatherings will now be allowed to have up to 100 people.
This means church services, weddings, funerals and all events will be able to take place, and community sport can be extended.
In one month (22 June) the government will consider whether we should move to alert level 1.
The Prime Minister says we’ve been able to relax the rules because “going hard and early has paid off,” and because there have been no new Covid cases that can attributed to our drop in alert levels.
“The fact we are even making these decisions shows the success we have had as a country in fighting this virus, and highlights how we can make choices other countries can’t.”
She says we now have “some of the most permissive settings” among the countries we commonly compare ourselves to, including Australia.
Hospitality venues will still need to have customers seated, which means clubs and bars will still need to adapt how they operate.
The government has also announced extended financial support for people who’ve lost their job due to Covid. Full-time workers will be eligible for $490 tax free a week, for 12 weeks.
1:00pm Monday 25 May - day 12 at alert level 2
Today there are no new cases of Covid-19.
This means our total case number remains at 1504.
1154 of these are confirmed cases, which is the number that we report to the World Health Organisation, and the rest are probable.
There are no new deaths.
1456 people have recovered, which is 97% of cases.
There is one person in hospital, not in intensive care.
Yesterday there were 2163 tests completed. There have been 261,315 tests done in total.