10 new Covid cases in managed isolation

There are 10 new cases of Covid-19 - all in managed isolation as people flood back to Auckland for the summer.

There are no new cases in the community, the Ministry of Health said in a statement

Two previously reported cases have now recovered. The total number of active cases in New Zealand is 51, said the ministry of health.

Today marks a month since the country's last case of community transmission in November's defence worker cluster.

All new cases are people who have recently arrived in the country and who were detected at the border.

Today's cases have come from all over the world - from Italy, the Netherlands via Singapore, the US, the UK, Germany, India and the United Arab Emirates.

All have been moved to quarantine facilities.

Covid-19 has claimed the lives of 25 people. Nearly half were residents in a Canterbury dementia rest home and died during the April outbreak.

The latest to test positive are two members of a family who returned from the Czech Republic on December 9. Another two people who travelled together on December 10 from the United States have also tested positive. They are all in quarantine at a managed isolation facility in Christchurch.

Earlier this week investigations were under way in to how an Air New Zealand crew member caught Covid-19 after flying in from the United States.

The Ministry of Health said whole genome sequencing showed the lineage didn't match any genomes previously sequenced in New Zealand. The same genome lineage had been reported in the US.

The aircrew member is recovering in the Auckland Jet Park quarantine facility.

Three other aircrew who are close contacts are in isolation. They have all returned negative tests so far.

The ministry said a fourth person who was a casual contact and transferred to the Auckland quarantine facility as a precaution after developing symptoms had returned a negative test result but remained in quarantine.

Meanwhile, the New Zealand Government announced they had secured enough vaccine doses for all people, beginning in the second half of next year.

It will be free for Kiwis.

First priority will be border and essential workers who are expected to get the vaccine in the second quarter of 2021.

A new public health campaign was launched ahead of the Christmas break to ensure a covid-free summer.

Covid Response Minister Chris Hipkins encouraged everyone to use the tracer app, scanning wherever people went and to turn on Bluetooth functionality.

This level of tracing would allow people to receive an alert if they had been near another person who tested positive for the infection.