The number of Covid-19 cases in New Zealand has passed the 1000 mark, it has been confirmed.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Director-General of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield were giving an update on Covid-19 on Sunday afternoon.
"Be proud of your efforts that you have all made. It is making a difference. Now is the time though to remain focused, to not let up," Ardern said.
- If you have symptoms of the coronavirus, call the NZ Covid-19 Healthline on 0800 358 5453 (+64 9 358 5453 for international SIMs) or call your GP - don't show up at a medical centre
Dr Bloomfield said there are 89 new cases of coronavirus in New Zealand: 48 confirmed cases and 41 probable cases, bringing the total number of cases since the pandemic began to 1039.
A significant new cluster had been identified in Christchurch, Bloomfield said,
There are 20 new confirmed or probable cases in Canterbury, bringing the total to 86.
There remains 10 cases in South Canterbury with no new ones recorded in the past 24 hours.
There are nine new confirmed or probable cases in the Southern DHB region, bringing the total to 160.
Bloomfield said over the next week he would signal mental health and well-being initiatives supporting people self-isolating, part of a $15 million package that's been previously announced.
PM 'VERY DISAPPOINTED' IN HEALTH MINISTER
Ardern said she was "very disappointed" in Health Minister David Clark for driving to go mountain biking this week but still had confidence in him and that he understood her expectations.
She did not think he was refusing interviews, adding that Clark continued to be in lockdown in Dunedin. "He continues to do his job."
There was nothing to read into Clark not fronting on television's Q+A this morning, as many other Ministers were consistently available to answer questions, she said.
A new health notice has been issued, leaving no doubt about what Kiwis can and cannot do during the four-week lockdown.
Fifteen people are in hospital, including three in ICU; one in Wellington and two in Auckland, with two reportedly in a critical condition.
The total number of lab tests so far is 36,209, 3093 of which were processed on Saturday.
Bloomfield said 45% of cases have a clear international travel link, 36% were contacts of known cases, and 1% were community transmission. Some 18% are still being investigated.
The breakdown of cases by ethnicity is 74% European, 8.3% Asian, 7.6% Maori an 3.3% Pacific.
MAN COUGHING ON PEOPLE AN IDIOT: PM
The Prime Minister said efforts to go after those breaking rules would ensure the success of the lockdown and move the country out of it as soon as possible.
Over Friday and Saturday, Jacinda Ardern said police had carried out 795 prevention patrols and 990 reassurance checks at essential services.
There are "still some people I would charitably describe as idiots", she said, citing the man in Christchurch who filmed himself coughing on people at the weekend. He has been charged and will appear in court on Monday.
Ardern said a strategy putting the economy ahead of health was wrong, and the loss of life would also lead to economic pain. She said countries who stemmed the flu epidemic of 1918 did better economically in the long run.
She said new cases made it hard to see success, but the lockdown measures had made an impact.
Modelling provided by Rodney Jones, principal of Wigram Capital Advisors, had predicted about 4000 cases by this weekend at the start of the lockdown.
The fact that we were only now at about 1000 was a reason for optimism, Ardern said.
"We have made a good start and the decisions we've made to date have made a difference."
She also pointed to Google data that showed "impressively high levels of compliance" by New Zealanders in lockdown.
Ardern said there will be long term effects on the economy, despite the $5 billion already paid out on wage subsidies.
This week the Government would continue to focus on stopping the spread of the virus to move out of the lockdown as soon as possible, she said.
That included scaling up contact tracing and getting a better gauge on community transmission.
Ardern said she would also ask for the kind of evidence needed before a move out of lockdown can be ascertained.
- NZ Herald and ODT Online
