Category Archives: New Zealand

Judith Collins bizarre attack on Siouxsie Wiles is something youd expect from a troll on the internet, rather than a leader in waiting, argues Toby Manhire.

Its the hardest job in politics, or so the platitude goes. Leader of the opposition. Whod want that? Jacinda Ardern got it right, maybe: take the gig 10 minutes before closing time.

But however thankless, ill-resourced and exhausting it might be to lead Her Majestys Loyal Opposition, its certainly not trivial. In a democracy, especially one in the midst of a crisis that has delivered extreme limitations on freedoms, however broad the support for those limitations might be, we need and deserve the scrutiny of opposition.

For that reason, I was personally in support of Judith Collins decision to travel to Wellington to, you know, lead the opposition to the government amid another destabilising Covid outbreak. She should be there, questioning the government response. Speaking directly to the press gallery, which in turn disseminates that critique to the public. Articulating an alternative perspective.

Especially given the return of the 1pm show, during which the prime minister or her deputies have such lengthy and high-rating screen-time, its not complicated: there is no more essential service than that delivered by the leader of the opposition.

Among her or his other tasks, the leader of the opposition presents to voters an alternative. Here, in this time when so many of us face pressure on our medical, emotional, social and financial health, is another vision. What do you think?

Well, here was the alternative presented today. According to reporting by Newshub, Judith Collins appeared on Zoom before a National-aligned Pacific New Zealand group. She was asked about a story by Cameron Slater, best known for running the now-defunct attack blog Whale Oil, which included a video of Siouxsie Wiles, the microbiologist, science communicator and a key contributor to The Spinoff. The video showed Wiles sitting on an Auckland beach with another person, one Slaters own enquiries revealed was in her bubble. The pair are without masks but a long way from any others. Wiles bubble-friend goes for a brief swim. Wiles does not.

Collins assessment? I think shes a big, fat hypocrite, actually. Just in case you thought that might be a loose sprinkler of words, rather than a deliberate, nasty, and precisely chosen phrase, she said it again:

I watched that video, and I thought: big, fat hypocrite.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is your leader of the opposition.

Briefly, about that video: Slater posted it on his Whale Oil 2.0 website hoping to embarrass Wiles. Enquiries placed to The Spinoff alleged that the person alongside her was a Spinoff staff member. You can hear him licking his lips.

In fact Wiles was with a friend and colleague who lives alone, and has joined her bubble. That friend (who has contributed a handful of pieces to The Spinoff over the years but is neither a journalist nor an employee) made a mistake in going for a short swim in level four. As Wiles has acknowledged, her friend should not have done that. The pair cycled to the beach, which is clearly within the rules.

Wiles should not be beyond criticism. Shes said she regrets not stopping her friend from swimming. Argue around the edges of how far people can cycle from home by all means. But as far as Collins response is concerned, the question is whether thats what you want to hear from someone auditioning for the role of prime minister.

Let me also say this: Im biased. Ive worked with Siouxsie for many years now as an editor. I admire her immensely her work as a microbiologist; her rare ability to express complex ideas in a way the less scientifically minded of us can grasp; her astounding work ethic, and accompanying lack of interest in personal gain; and her ability to carry on in the face of wave after wave of harassment and bullying.

Eighteen months and one day ago, Siouxsies first collaboration with my friend and colleague Toby Morris was published on The Spinoff. Its been a privilege to watch the pair of them work. Both have worked 100 hour weeks, much more than once, because theyre weird, and because they give a shit.

Theyve created work that has been viewed by hundreds of millions of people around the world. Because Siouxsie insisted from the start that the work should be released under a creative commons licence, its been translated into dozens of languages. Its been repackaged and shared by public health authorities in the UK, Australia, Argentina, the Czech Republic, and a heap of other places. One of my favourites: a version of the break the chain animation, popped up in a campaign on Berlin bus-stops. The WHO used the pair for much of last year as key parts of its communication strategy.

What a body of work. Siouxsie Wiles legacy is immense. Judith Collins legacy? You tell me. Or, a better thought experiment: try to imagine her as the prime minister, leading the country in the face of a crisis.

I thought Judith Collins, under plenty of pressure, did a good job in her closing speech at the National Party conference the other day. I watched it from the mezzanine, and called it confident and assured. She was really good last Sunday on Q+A. She looked like someone who might even lead a party that would lead the country. She looked like a worthy successor to John Key and Bill English.

Sadly that was an aberration. The norm is the baffling shouting down the webcam at Indira Stewart on the countrys most viewed breakfast television programme. The norm is the tin-eared hollering into a near empty House of Representatives. Shes now drawing attention to the work of a discredited, malevolent, dirt-throwing attack blogger, which had been roundly ignored by credible media until that point. Worse maybe than all of that, as far as the expediencies of politics are concerned, she has proven herself completely unpredictable.

The National Party caucus is not short of talent. While Collins was hurling poison across the benches on the day the house resumed last week, Chris Bishop (recently demoted by Collins) opened his speech by celebrating the increased rates of vaccination and praising essential workers. Dr Shane Reti has been a conscience and critic on issues including the failure to fully include GPs in the Covid response. Erica Stanford has led the charge on the important, unsexy work of families split apart by the Covid immigration rules.

Simon Bridges was judged to have cocked up the National response in the first outbreak, but watch his performance on the epidemic response committee in 2020: there was a leader. Louise Upston has been asking timely and important questions about the wage subsidy. Matt Doocey has done a heap of mahi on mental health, and is asking hard, important questions on a sector where the government, in my view, has let us down really badly. Gerry Brownlee started a podcast, and its pretty good!

Maybe Collins is the hardest job in politics, and maybe thats because we find out who you are.

Janet Wilson, an experienced, smart and measured former journalist and communications expert, worked loyally and stoically alongside Collins through the agony of the last election campaign. So appalled has she been by the National leaders performance she recently described her as Muldoonist, as paranoid, leading a party floundering, saddled with endless entitleditis and on a path to irrelevance.

Senior members of John Keys slick ninth floor team talk privately, but with striking candour, and more than a little despair, about the state of the leadership today. And who can blame them? Key and Bill English and others must weep at the sight of a years-long project to cement National as the sensible voice of a modern middle New Zealand collapsing a little further with each spring-loaded outburst from Collins.

You can understand why National MPs might shrink from the idea of another destabilising leadership change. You can understand why those who see themselves as potential leaders might have been calculating that it would be best to wait until after the next election.

But when the door is unhinged so far from its frame that its flown to another dimension, when your reputation as a party is so rapidly corroding, when your leader appears glued to the dirty politics poison of years past, when your leader is indistinguishable from a pseudonymous Twitter account ending in six random digits, when the country remains in a serious crisis that demands serious people, were fast arriving at a point where National demanding anything but change at the top is not just foolish, its irresponsible.

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New Zealand urgently needs a serious opposition leader - The Spinoff

3:38am, 10 September 2021

Danny Care has approved of the new World 12s competition scheduled to launch next year in the belief it could be the spark needed to improve rugby as a spectacle. Former England scrum-half Care was an influential figure as Harlequins lit up the Gallagher Premiership last season with a thrilling attacking style that swept them all the way to the title.

Just weeks after Quins had stormed Twickenham in swashbuckling fashion, the British and Irish Lions fought out a dreary three-Test series against South Africa that was a hard watch even for purists. It is hoped that the World 12s, a competition that has similarities to crickets Indian Premier League, will attract new fans by having fewer players on the pitch twelve on each side using adapted laws designed to speed up play in games that last only 30 minutes.

Taking place in August and September, the hope is that top players from across the world enticed by large salaries will be auctioned to appear for eight privately funded franchises. It must first overcome several major stumbling blocks but while the response of governing bodies has so far been lukewarm, Care believes it could be the shake-up the sport needs.

Matt Dawson and Mike Brown on their favourite rugby memories

I can see issues with it, like player release, clubs and unions not wanting players to go and play it, but I do see the sport needing change, Care said when representing Harlequins at the virtual 2021/22 Premiership launch. If you watch the majority of international Test matches at the moment, if New Zealand and France arent playing then it doesnt really excite me, Ill be honest with you.

If there are any ways of trying to change that and inspire kids to pick up a rugby ball then Im all for it. I tried to get my son to watch the Lions tour and he was like what is this? Id like to think our club tries to play in a way that inspires kids to play. I know international rugby is very different to club rugby and they say you cant play like that in international rugby. Why not? Why cant you? You can if your coaches let you play like that. Maybe the 12s thing is an opportunity for coaches to look at that and think maybe we could play more of an expansive game. Its certainly something Id want to watch and maybe get involved in if I make the auction!

Exeter boss Rob Baxter fears the competition will put players and clubs in a difficult position and the problems surrounding player release are the biggest hurdle it faces. Care, however, insists players would welcome the opportunity to earn more money. If we have all the best English players playing in England for the majority of the year, the English team is going to be better, added Care, the seasoned 34-year-old Harlequins half-back.

Let them do that, but also allow them to go and earn a bit of money. Lets be honest, not many players earn enough to not have to go and work the day after they retire. Were very lucky to do what we do but its not cricket, certainly not football, so if we can bring more money into the sport and attract more who want to play it then its only a good thing for the game.

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'If New Zealand and France aren't playing it doesn't excite me' - RugbyPass

Herald journalists have been following Covid-19 and its impact on the world since it emerged in Wuhan in 2019. Experts in their fields, Derek Cheng, Jamie Morton and Liam Dann have been keeping New Zealand informed about the pandemic from a political, scientific and economic point of view. Now, as we battle an outbreak of the Delta variant in our community they offer their expert opinion on what this means for the future of NZ.

How long will we be in lockdown?

Auckland won't move out of level 4 until the Government can be confident there are no infectious people in the community spreading Delta from bubble to bubble.They could be essential workers, supermarket-goers or simply rule-breakers. They could beundetected cases linked to mystery ones. In a best-case scenario, the number of infectious cases in the community could fall to zero this coming week, leading to level 3, and then level 2 after another week of no sign of cases who aren't already isolating. The worst-case scenario is that this number not only rises after movement in the community, but an essential worker also takes the virus beyond Auckland's boundary. If the outbreak flares up,Auckland would need to stay in lockdown until vaccination coverage starts to flatten the curve - which might not be until the end of the year.

Will life go back to normal when we come out?

Things will be Delta-tweaked, as we've already seen with tighter restrictions on gatherings and more mask-wearing at level 2. This accounts for the possibility of airborne transmission from fleeting encounters. Level 1 may be able to stay as it is now - with maximum freedom, but now with mandatory record-keeping - but the trade-off would be tighter border restrictions to minimise the number of Delta cases coming into the country.Lockdowns may still be used, but as more of us get vaccinated, they won't be needed as much as they are now.

Can we still eliminate Covid - or are we going to have to learn to live with it?

It's hard to say what next year will be like, but pursuing elimination for now at least gives us a choice. It's also the best thing to do while we remain so unvaccinated.Once vaccination coverage is sufficient for the borders to start reopening, however, the virus will come into our communities and - as we do now - we will rely on rapid testing, tracing and case isolation, and even localised lockdowns to minimise its spread. We may still be able to quickly stamp out any incursion into the community. We may also not need to if vaccines and Covid treatment have evolved to a point where we can live with it without hospitals being overrun or people dying needlessly.

Is vaccination the answer?

It's not the only answer but it's certainly the loudest. It minimises the chances of catching the virus, and if you do, it minimises the chances of death or severe illness. Countries we like to compare ourselves to have had vaccination rates plateau at around 53 (US) to 68 per cent (Canada). Clearly, no one is going to get 100 per cent coverage, and even if they did, vaccines aren't 100 per cent effective so people would still get sick. Some public health measures and border restrictions are still needed.

When will we reopen our borders?

26 Aug, 2021 05:18 AMQuick Read

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The current outbreak doesn't necessarily push back the timeline of early next year. The Government's plan toreopen waspredicated on having everyone vaccinated who wants tobe, with enough coverage among certain groups. This will hopefully be achieved by the end of the year, regardless of whether we beat the current outbreak. But reopening was also predicated on starting from a position where the virus is eliminated, which would give us the best chance of continuing that strategy, should we choose to. If we're not thereas the clock ticks 2022, we may want to strive to return there - if possible. This would give us options on how to live in a Covid world that will be with us for some time, and which could still throw a more deadly variant our way. And that might mean a little longer in Fortress NZ.

How long will Auckland be in lockdown?

That partly depends on Aucklanders continuing to play their part under Level 4, and not giving the virus a chance to spread. Mathematically, there's the all-important "R" value, which is simply how many people are being infected by each positive case of Covid-19. Before lockdown, Delta's R, potent as it is, was sitting above six. When the number is high, the virus spreads faster. With the virus now having been starved for weeks, we can safely assume it's well below one. Perhaps even as low as 0.4, as current modelling shows. The Auckland-centred outbreak might now be eliminated within weeks, provided we keep the pressure on it. When will Auckland join the rest of the country at "Delta Level 2"? That depends on officials' appetite for risk - and with Delta, that tolerance level will be extremely low. It's also worth noting that more than 20 community cases during this outbreak haven't been epidemiologically linked - and that will make officials nervous. It only takes one rogue case to re-ignite an outbreak.

Will life go back to normal when we come out?

As we've already seen around the rest of New Zealand, life even at level 2 is much different than it used to be. It now means masking up in most public places - including supermarkets and shopping malls - and the measure is also recommended, but not required, in schools. Scanning and record-keeping are now required in a lot of settings. A bar or restaurant can't have more than 50 people seated at a time. Experts have gone as far as arguing that these busy venues shouldn't have even been allowed to open under the new level 2. When Auckland's lockdown finally lifts, it's likely that this is what people can expect. And at level 1, we might anticipate other tweaks that mean "normal" life in New Zealand won't be the same.

Can we still eliminate Covid - or are we going to have to learn to live with it?

In New Zealand, and for the time being, yes we can, as the response to this outbreak is showing. But that'll be increasingly tough in the age of Delta. A few quick reasons to stick with the strategy: it's given New Zealand a cumulative Covid-19 death rate nearly 250 times lower than the OECD average, and helped protect our economy. Going by GDP over the first five quarters of the pandemic, New Zealand's was the sixth-best performing in the 38-nation club. On top of that, it's kept our health system from being overloaded and spared Kiwis the long-term problems that follow infection. Epidemiologists say there's no reason our strategy can't hold against even Delta, so long as we go as hard as we can while we're still vaccinating. South Australia, Queensland, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China and Singapore have already proven it's possible. And going forward, as coverage rates rise, the strategy can be changed. It's a trump card that we shouldn't throw away - and we'd be foolish to go the way of other nations like the UK if we don't have to. In the longer term, and globally, however, worldwide eradication is probably next to impossible. That'll likely mean that the virus could become endemic here when we reopen - albeit with some protection from high vaccination rates, hopefully.

Is vaccination the answer?

It's part of the answer. Much has been said of Australia's 70 to 80 per cent vaccination threshold - a milestone at which politicians across the ditch have promised restrictions can begin to be lifted. It's a federal game-plan that states like New South Wales and Victoria are now having to embrace after Delta outbreaks have taken elimination off the table. But that won't mean there won't be other controls in place across Australia, or that it'll be like living in 2019. Here in New Zealand, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has repeatedly pushed the line that the Government will review the options once it has completed its vaccination drive. But again, it'll be unlikely this will spell complete freedom. Modelling studies tell us that achieving population immunity against Delta is unlikely, given this would require uptake among all Kiwis to be close to 100 per cent. Currently, the shot is only approved for people older than 12 - and willingness to get the vaccine among the population has been sitting at only 80 per cent.

When will we reopen our borders?

At this point, that's tough to say. As the Delta outbreak hit, the Government had already been in the process of opening a self-isolation trial for vaccinated travellers to prepare for a "phased resumption" of quarantine-free travel. It's worth noting that Sir David Skegg's group found that allowing more quarantine-free travel would raise the risk of Covid-19 entering the country again - and even with high vaccination levels, there'd still be some clusters of infection and occasional large outbreaks. By sticking with elimination, we might hope these could be stamped out without more lockdowns, and by public health and social measures such as mass testing, rapid tracing and isolation of contacts, as well as physical distancing and mask-wearing where appropriate. Simply throwing open our borders and letting the virus rip doesn't seem a good option, even in the long term. One modelling paper found that even if we vaccinated nine in 10 Kiwis, doing this led to more than 11,000 hospitalisations - and more than 1000 deaths - in only two years. So the most important question might not be when we reopen, but how.

How long will we be in lockdown?

Economics doesn't claim any special insight into this. It's ultimately a political call, underpinned by the science. What economists do is model outcomes for various scenarios. For most, the base case is still the optimistic one we're all hoping for - four weeks of level 4 for Auckland, followed by a couple at level 3. While level 2remains problematic for some specific sectors, it matters less at a macro-economic level. Sydney-based Capital Economics has modelled a scenario where we fail to eliminate and follow the Aussie path of lower-level lockdowns for longer (while we vaccinate). The good news is they still forecast the economy to hold up well.

Will life go back to normal when we come out?

Normal is a pretty fluid concept these days. Will we get back to the gym, meet friends for a beer and get back on the sidelines for kids' sport?Sure, New Zealand has already proved it can do that - through the past 18 months and through other epic events like the world wars. But the world isn't ever going back to the way it was in 2019.History doesn't work that way. When Covid finally fades from the front pages, the world will have emerged from an accelerated period of technological, social and political change.It will be a different place. But like everything, it will, eventually, feel normal.

Can we still eliminate Covid - or are we going to have to learn to live with it?

We are already learning to live with it. Thankfully we are learning to live with it at the borders or the fringes of the community. We're learning to live with it, without mass hospitalisations and deaths. Sooner or later, we'll have to tolerate it in the community. But for now, from a social and economic point of view, elimination provides a better outcome. Our borders have never closed to commerce and capital. That's allowed the economy to perform well even with the inflow of people restricted. No one wants to live this way indefinitely. But doing so for a bit longer will allow us to make choices about our risk appetite, as a nation.

Is vaccination the answer?

Yes, absolutely. But it isn't a silver bullet, or at least this version isn't. History tells us that humans will win this race. But it has really just begun - scientifically and logistically. We need the whole world vaccinated. And we need more effective vaccines. I'm optimistic about the latter, at least. Although only eight vaccines are approved for full use, more than 100 are in development, according to the New York Times. In New Zealand, getting vaccination rates above 80 per cent would be a game-changer. It would also be a world-beating effort. But that's okay, Kiwis love that kind of challenge.

When will we reopen our borders?

If we can hit those world-beating vaccination rates, I'm hopeful we'll still be able to follow the plan outlined by the PM pre-lockdown,without too much delay.This would mean a careful, targeted reopening through 2022. But we should be realistic about the timeframe for unrestricted travel. Air New Zealand's cautious strategy offers a good touchstone.It has deferred buying two Boeing 787s for up to four years and has not committed to capital expenditure beyond 2028. The airline is configuring for a lengthy period of partial reopening, along the lines of what we saw with the transtasman and Cook Island bubbles.

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Where to from here? Herald Covid-19 experts on the future for NZ - New Zealand Herald

Now that the world is standing still, what are you dreaming of?

Across NewZealand, you can find everything from untamed wilderness to rich culture. Find inspiration in towering mountains and mist-cloaked fjords. Serenity in golden beaches curled around quiet bays. New friends in small towns with big doses of laid-back charm.

When the world starts to move again, find your dream destination here.

See all things to do|North Island destinations | South Island destinations

Now that the world is standing still, what are you dreaming of?Across NewZealand, you can find everything from untamed wilderness to rich culture. Find inspiration in towering mountains and mist-cloaked fjords. Serenity in golden beaches curled around quiet bays. New friends in small towns with big doses of laid-back charm. When the world starts to move again, find your dream destination here.

See all things to do|North Island destinations | South Island destinations

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Welcome to New Zealand | Official site for Tourism New Zealand

The attacker had been a "person of interest" since 2016, police said.

September 3, 2021, 8:57 AM

4 min read

New Zealand is reeling from a knife-wielding rampage at a busy Auckland supermarket that left six fighting for their lives and the assailant dead. Authorities have called it a terror attack.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern confirmed that the man behind Friday's terrorist attack in Auckland, who was shot dead by police after he stabbed six people in a supermarket, was inspired by ideologies of the Islamic State militant group.

"A violent extremist undertook a terrorist attack on innocent New Zealanders," Ardern said at a briefing Friday afternoon.

Three of the six victims were critically injured, one is in serious condition and two are in moderate condition, police said.

The attacker, who cannot be identified under local laws, was a Sri Lankan national who arrived in New Zealand in 2011. He had been a "person of interest" and under heavy surveillance by the New Zealand police and Special Tactics Group since 2016, Ardern said.

Police stand outside the site of a knife attack at a supermarket in Auckland, New Zealand, Friday, Sept. 3, 2021. New Zealand authorities say they shot and killed a violent extremist after he entered the supermarket and stabbed and injured six shoppers. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern described Friday's incident as a terror attack. (AP Photo/Brett Phibbs)

The attack took place at LynnMall in the district of New Lynn on Friday afternoon. Officers, who were closely following the man, watched as he entered the Countdown supermarket.

Police Commissioner Andrew Coster said they believe the man took a knife from one of the supermarket shelves. The officers on the scene "challenged the man and diverted his attention." Police shot and killed him within one minute of beginning the attack.

"We were doing absolutely everything possible to monitor him and indeed the fact that we were able to intervene so quickly, in roughly 60 seconds, shows just how closely we were watching him," said Coster during Friday's briefing.

A parking lot of a supermarket that was the site of a knife attack sits empty in Auckland, New Zealand, Friday, Sept. 3, 2021. New Zealand authorities say they shot and killed a violent extremist after he entered the supermarket and stabbed and injured six shoppers. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern described Friday's incident as a terror attack. (AP Photo/Brett Phibbs)

Coster said the attacker was a "lone actor" and authorities are confident there is no further threat posed to the public.

When asked why police resisted arresting or deporting the attacker in recent years, despite "his interest in extremist ideology," Ardern said authorities did everything they could, within the legal means, "to keep people safe from this individual."

"What happened today was despicable. It was hateful. It was wrong," Ardern said.

"It was carried out by an individualnot a faith, not a culture, not an ethnicity, but an individual personwho was gripped by ideology that is not supported here by anyone or any community," she added. "He alone carries the responsibility for these acts. Let that be where the judgment falls."

New Zealand has been on high alert for terror attacks since early 2019, when a white supremacist gunman killed 51 people at two mosques in Christchurch. This May, four people were stabbed in a supermarket in Dunedin on the country's South Island.

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New Zealand police shoot dead 'ISIS-inspired extremist ...

New Zealands plans to reopen its borders to the world early next year will have to undergo a complete reworking, the government has warned, as the country races to stamp out an outbreak of the highly infectious Delta variant.

The nation recorded 15 new cases of coronavirus in the community on Wednesday, bringing the total number in the outbreak to 855.

It was the fifth day in a row that case numbers have been at or below 21, in an encouraging sign the country is on its way to stamping out the virus. But how the virus got into the community in the first place remains a mystery.

All of the new cases were in Auckland, which remains in a level 4 lockdown until next week, and all but two were epidemiologically linked to existing cases. There were 25 unlinked cases in total. Three-quarters of the recorded cases were in isolation throughout the period they were infected.

The rest of the country was in level 2, although some restrictions remained on gathering size and using masks in some public places.

The likelihood of New Zealand reopening its border to the world any time soon is looking less promising. The country has had strict border measures in place since the pandemic started.

Hipkins told parliament on Tuesday night that the governments reopening plan, unveiled just days before the outbreak would have to be completely re-worked.

Part of that strategy included risk-profiling of other countries, so places with high rates of vaccination and low levels of Covid-19 could be treated differently to places where the virus was rampant.

We were looking at a situation where you could stratify countries based on risk, and I think in the Delta environment, we actually have to consider whether, in fact, thats an appropriate thing to do, recognising that all countries, all people coming into the country at this point, have a degree of risk associated with them, Hipkins said.

At Wednesdays media briefing, Hipkins added that talks of a Trans-Tasman bubble were ongoing but that it would be a while before the bubble could resume.

Of the total cases in New Zealand, 215 people had recovered from the virus. There were 37 people in hospital, with 6 people in intensive care and 4 on ventilators.

Most of the 855 people in the outbreak had not had a vaccine, while 115 people have had one dose and 38 were fully vaccinated.

As of Wednesday, more than 38,000 close contacts had been identified, with 87% of those having had at least one test. There were more than 72,800 vaccine doses administered on Tuesday, bringing the total number of doses given out to 4,032,710. More than 60% of the eligible population (12 years and older) have now had their first dose, with a third of that population fully vaccinated.

Hipkins said on Wednesday that a significant investigation into the Crowne Plaza, a managed isolation quarantine facility in Auckland, shed no light on how the virus was transmitted into the community.

The first community case was epidemiologically linked to a traveller who had recently returned to New Zealand from Sydney, and who stayed at the facility. An atrium in the hotel and a public walkway were narrowed down as possible sites of transmission, but Hipkins said the exact chain had not been established.

Audits showed that ventilation at the Crowne Plaza met the relevant infection prevention and control standards and there was a less than 1% chance that it came via someone standing in the lobby.

On Tuesday, the health ministry confirmed 29 staff at Middlemore hospital were close contacts of a Covid-19 case and have been stood down for 14 days, after a person who tested positive for the virus showed up to the emergency department on Saturday with abdominal pain. Four wards were closed to any new admissions and all patients were being managed under strict infection and prevention control measures.

The man denied having knowledge of being in contact with the virus or being in a location of interest and did not have any other symptoms.

The three patients who initially shared a room with the case are now in isolation. One has been discharged to a managed isolation facility and the other two will stay in isolation rooms at the hospital as they continue receiving treatment.

Hipkins encouraged everyone who could be vaccinated to do so, adding that the supply was not going to run out. There were roughly 629,000 doses currently in the country, he said.

The prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, announced on Tuesday the country was finalising arrangements to secure extra doses of the Pfizer vaccine in order to keep up with the increased pace of its rollout.

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New Zealand to rethink plan to reopen borders amid Delta outbreak - The Guardian

New Zealand is easing the coronavirus lockdown for nearly the entire country first imposed last month after the Pacific nation reported its first confirmed COVID-19 case in six months.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Monday that the nationwide alert level will be lowered to Level 2, allowing schools, businesses and offices to reopen.

The new orders will not apply to Auckland, New Zealands largest city and the epicenter of the current outbreak that began when a 58-year-old man tested positive for the delta variant of COVID-19 in mid-August. The nation has posted 821 confirmed COVID-19 cases during the current outbreak, including 20 new cases on Monday.

Auckland will remain under strict stay-at-home orders until September 14, keeping all schools, offices and businesses shut down with only essential services remaining operational.

Prime Minister Ardern has embraced a strategy of totally eliminating COVID-19, saying it was necessary to go hard with the strict lockdown in order to prevent a widespread outbreak. New Zealand imposed a strict lockdown in the early days of the pandemic that has led to just 3,814 confirmed infections and just 27 deaths among its five million citizens.

Only 25 to 30 percent of all New Zealanders have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Officials say the government is nearing a final agreement to secure more doses of the two-shot Pfizer vaccine within days.

Hong Kong

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam announced Tuesday that beginning September 15, travelers from mainland China and the nearby enclave of Macao will be allowed to enter the semi-autonomous city without a mandatory quarantine. Lam told reporters that it will allow a total of 2,000 travelers from both places on a daily basis, but they will be required to show proof of a negative COVID-19 test prior to arrival.

Lam also said Hong Kong residents will be allowed to return to the city from the mainland without undergoing quarantine, so long as they did not travel to any high-risk areas.

The new changes are part of the governments new Come2HK program aimed at reviving the citys tourism industry, which sustained major losses during the first year of the pandemic as Hong Kong pursued a zero-Covid elimination strategy. But the city will continue to impose travel restrictions on travelers from foreign countries, prompting growing frustration among Hong Kongs business community.

Some information for this report came from the Associated Press and Reuters.

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New Zealand to Lift Many COVID-19 Restrictions - VOA Asia

SYDNEY, Sept 8 (Reuters) - Websites of a number of financial institutions in New Zealand and its national postal service were briefly down on Wednesday, with officials saying they were battling a cyber attack.

The country's Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) said it was aware of a DDoS (distributed denial of service) attack targeting a number of organisations in the country.

It was "monitoring the situation and are working with affected parties where we can," CERT said on its website.

Some of the affected websites affected by the attack according to local media reports included Australia and New Zealand Banking Group's (ANZ.AX) New Zealand site and NZ Post.

In a Facebook post, ANZ told customers it was aware some of them were not able to access online banking services. "Our tech team are working hard to get this fixed, we apologise for any inconvenience this may cause," the post said.

Representatives for ANZ did not immediately return requests for comment.

NZ Post said the "intermittent disruptions" on its website were due to an issue at one of its third-party suppliers.

Several customers resorted to social media to report outages at Kiwibank, a small lender partly owned by the NZ Post. Kiwibank apologised to customers in a Twitter post and said it was working to fix "intermittent access" to services in its app, internet banking, phone banking and website.

In DDoS attacks, the servers of high-profile institutions are crowded out by incoming traffic from superfluous requests that try to overload the system and drown legitimate requests.

In January, a cyber-attack led to a serious data breach at New Zealand central bank, which followed several attacks on the operator of New Zealand's stock exchange a year ago.

A group of hackers also targeted hospitals in May. read more

Reporting by Paulina Duran in Sydney; Editing by Lincoln Feast.

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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New Zealand banks, post office hit by outages in apparent cyber attack - Reuters

UNDATED -- The resurgence of COVID-19 this summer and the national debate over vaccine requirements have created a fraught situation for the United States' first responders, who are dying in larger numbers but pushing back against mandates.

Its a stark contrast from the beginning of the vaccine rollout when first responders were prioritized for shots.

The mandates affect tens of thousands of police officers, firefighters and others on the front lines across the country, many of whom are spurning the vaccine. That is happening despite mandates consequences that range from weekly testing to suspension to termination even though the virus is now the leading cause of U.S. law enforcement line-of-duty deaths.

According to the Officer Down Memorial Page, 132 members of law enforcement agencies are known to have died of COVID-19 in 2021. In Florida alone last month, six people affiliated with law enforcement died over a 10-day period.

Despite the deaths, police officers and other first responders are among those most hesitant to get the vaccine and their cases continue to grow. No national statistics show the vaccination rate for Americas entire population of first responders but individual police and fire departments across the country report figures far below the national rate of 74% of adults who have had at least one dose.

-

MORE ON THE PANDEMIC:

European Union regulator pondering whether to recommend Pfizer booster shots for 16 and older

Two anchors of COVID safety net ending, affecting millions in US

Volunteers help poorest survive Thailands worst COVID surge yet

Hospitals in crisis in Mississippi, the least-vaccinated US state

Want to attend Hamilton? Not unless you meet virus protocols

Find more AP coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic and https://apnews.com/hub/coronvirus-vaccine

HERES WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

AMSTERDAM The European Medicines Agency says it has started an expedited evaluation on whether to recommend use of a booster dose of the coronavirus vaccine made by Pfizer-BioNTech.

In a statement Monday, the EU drug regulator says it is considering whether a third dose of the vaccine should be given six months after people over age 16 have received two doses to restore protection after it has waned.

EMAs experts are carrying out an accelerated assessment of data submitted by Pfizer and BioNTech, including results from an ongoing research trial in which about 300 healthy adults received a booster dose about six months after their second dose.

Pfizer has already submitted an application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administer for authorization of a third dose and the U.S. government said last month boosters would likely be available in late September. Israel has already started administering booster doses and the plan is under consideration in other countries for vulnerable populations, including France and Germany.

The Amsterdam-based agency said it expects to make a decision in the next few weeks.

DETROIT Five federal courthouses in eastern Michigan will fully reopen Tuesday for the first time since COVID-19 restrictions were put in place in March 2020.

Lawyers, news reporters, jurors and court spectators will be required to answer questions about their health and have their temperature checked at courthouse entrances. Masks will be required.

Courthouse employees who have not been vaccinated will be required to share the results of two weekly COVID-19 tests at their own expense.

The court is doing everything in its power to make sure that everyone who uses our facilities are protected, said Chief U.S. District Judge Denise Page Hood.

The main courthouse is in downtown Detroit, but there are other federal courthouses in Flint, Bay City, Ann Arbor and Port Huron. Remote video access will be provided for some hearings in civil lawsuits. But nearly all criminal cases will be conducted in person at the courthouses.

SANTIAGO, Chile Chiles Public Health Institute has approved the Chinese-developed Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine for children older than 6, though the health minister must approve the plan before shots enter arms.

The panel of senior physicians, including presidents of the associations of pediatrics and infectology, analyzed a Chinese study of 500 children aged 3 to 17, all of whom produced antibodies. A similar study of 4,000 children is being organized in Chile.

Brazils health regulatory agency, however, recently rejected a similar request by Sinovac, and asked for data involving a larger study.

Chile already had authorized vaccinations for children as young as 12, though only with the Pfizer vaccine. Supply shortages have stalled that effort.

Chilean officials plan to vaccinate 15.2 million of the countrys 19 million people. So far they have given a full double dose regimen to 86% of those now eligible. The country last month also began giving AstraZeneca booster shots to fully vaccinated people people older than 55.

ROME Life expectancy for men in some of Italys worst-hit provinces in the pandemic dropped by more than four years.

ISTAT, Italys national statistics bureau, in a report on Monday said that compared with 2019, nationwide life expectancy for those born in 2020 dropped by 1.2 years.

In 2020, the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and the sharp increase in the risk of mortality that derived from it abruptly interrupted the increase of life expectancy at birth that had marked a trend up to 2019, ISTAT said.

The pandemic first erupted outside Asia in northern Italy, and much of the north reeled with confirmed COVID-19 deaths in the initial wave of cases. In the northern provinces of Bergamo, Cremona and Lodi, life expectancy for men decreased by some 4.3 to 4.5 years. For women in those provinces, the reduced expectancy ranged from 3.2 to 2.9 years.

For a child born in 2020, male life expectancy nationwide is 79.7 and female life expectancy is 84.4, ISTAT said.

PHOENIX -- A program announced by Arizonas Republican governor last month giving private school vouchers to students whose parents object to school mask requirements has seen a surge of applications.

More than 2,700 applications have been started or completed in less than two weeks. Thats twice as many as can be funded with the $10 million in federal coronavirus relief cash earmarked for the program.

Gov. Doug Duceys plan will give $7,000 a year to each student to pay for private school tuition.

School voucher opponents worry they will permanently get vouchers and some Republican lawmakers say they hope thats the case.

ROME Italys health minister says a two-day meeting of his G-20 counterparts yielded resolve to help poor nations obtain more COVID-19 vaccines.

Minister Roberto Speranza told reporters in Rome on Monday that achieving that includes vaccine production in less developed nations. The goal is to bring vaccines to every corner of the world, said Speranza. He described the meetings unanimous final document as a departure point.

Stronger nations, starting with the G-20, are committing to more resources and to sending vaccines to the more vulnerable countries, he said, adding that efforts like COVAX need to be strengthened.

We want to build on conditions so that production can be brought to the countries. Its not enough merely to transfer doses, Speranza said.

COVAX is an international mechanism created in part to share vaccines so that poorer wouldnt have to rely on donations. But in some cases, wealthy nations have received doses through COVAX.

COPENHAGEN, Denmark Danish health authorities say they are offering jabs in supermarkets as they are aware of differences in the vaccination pattern even though more than 80% of people over 12 have had two shots of vaccine.

It is especially young people who have not received the first jab, said Soeren Brostroem, head of the Danish Health Agency.

On Saturday, vaccines will be offered in two of Denmarks largest supermarket chains, Bilka and Foetex, No appointments are needed.

We want to ensure that the offer of vaccination is as accessible as possible, so that, for example, it is possible to get a shot while shopping, Brostroem said, adding there are many young people working in retail.

Denmark has a target of reaching 90% of people above the age of 12 by Oct. 1.

As of Sept. 10, the digital pass a proof of vaccination or a negative test which was required to enter nightclubs becomes the last COVID-19 safeguard to fall.

PRISTINA, Kosovo --- Kosovos Health Ministry said it has received half a million Pfizer vaccines Monday sent from the United States.

Kosovos 1.8 million people have faced a surge in new infections during the last month. On Monday there were 28 deaths and 489 new cases.

The ministry said it had received 503,100 Pfizer shots from the United States through the COVAX program. It strongly called on people older than 16 years old to take the jabs as the only way to prevent further spread of the coronavirus.

About 17% of Kosovo's people have gotten both shots of the vaccine so far.

SEOUL, South Korea South Koreas daily increase in coronavirus infections has exceeded 1,000 for the 62nd consecutive day as officials are raising concerns about another viral spike during this months Chuseok holidays, the Korean version of Thanksgiving.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said more than 940 of the 1,375 new cases reported Monday were from Seoul and the nearby metropolitan region, where a rise in infections have been linked to the reopening of schools and people returning from summer vacations.

While the virus has slowed outside the capital area in recent weeks, KDCA official Kim Ki-nam said transmissions could worsen nationwide during the Chuseok break, which starts on Sept. 20, a time when millions usually travel across the country to meet relatives.

Officials are enforcing the countrys strongest social distancing rules in the greater capital area, where private social gatherings of three or more are banned after 6 p.m. unless all are fully vaccinated.

A slow vaccine rollout has left less than 35% of South Koreans fully vaccinated as of Monday.

HANOI About 23 million Vietnamese students have started a new school year, most of them in virtual classrooms, amid a COVID-19 lockdown to contain a virus surge in the country.

Since April, when the latest wave of the virus spread in the country, Vietnam closed down schools and education institutes in pandemic areas and move learning activities to online platforms.

Millions of students spent their summer break at home as more than half of the country is in lockdown. In hard-hit provinces, schools have been converted into quarantine facilities and field hospitals.

In Ho Chi Minh city, the epicenter of Vietnams worst virus outbreak, teachers and students observed a minute of silence to pay tribute to those who died of COVID-19 and honor front-liners before opening classes Monday.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand Most of New Zealand will move out of lockdown Tuesday except for the largest city of Auckland, which will remain in the strictest type of lockdown until at least next week, the government announced Monday.

The nation has been battling an outbreak of the delta variant of the coronavirus since last month. All recent cases have been found in Auckland, including 20 that were found on Monday.

There have been a total of 821 cases found in the outbreak. The government is pursuing an unusual strategy of trying to eliminate the virus entirely.

JERUSALEM -- Israel says it will soon reopen its gates to foreign tour groups even as it battles one of the worlds highest rates of coronavirus infections.

The countrys Tourism Ministry on Sunday said it will begin allowing organized tour groups into the country beginning Sept. 19.

Tourists will have to be vaccinated against the coronavirus, present a negative PCR test before their flight and undergo both PCR and serological testing upon arrival. Visitors would have to quarantine in their hotels until the test results come back -- a process expected to take no more than 24 hours.

Tourists from a handful of red countries with high infection rates -- including Turkey and Brazil -- will not be permitted to visit for the time being.

Israel launched a similar program in May after vaccinating most of its population early this year. But the program was suspended in August as the delta variant began to spread.

In recent weeks, the country has begun administering booster shots to anyone who was vaccinated over five months ago.

See original here:

The Latest: Most of New Zealand to end virus lockdown - ABC News

New Zealand corrections officers say that during the time an Islamic State-inspired extremist was incarcerated, he was moved to a maximum security prison after punching officers and repeatedly throwing feces and urine at them

By NICK PERRY Associated Press

September 7, 2021, 7:43 AM

3 min read

WELLINGTON, New Zealand -- During the time an Islamic State-inspired extremist was incarcerated in New Zealand, he was moved to a maximum security prison after punching officers and repeatedly throwing feces and urine at them, corrections officials said Tuesday.

Ahamed Samsudeen, 32, was shot and killed by police Friday after he grabbed a knife at an Auckland supermarket and began stabbing shoppers, injuring seven.

Some 30 officers had been following Samsudeen around the clock for 53 days since his release from prison, worried he was primed to launch a terror attack at any moment.

Since the attack, the condition of his victims has improved each day. Police said Tuesday that two victims remain hospitalized in intensive care units while two more are in general wards, and all are now in stable condition. The other three victims are recovering at home.

This is really encouraging and positive news, said assistant commissioner Lauano Sue Schwalger.

Samsudeen arrived in New Zealand ten years ago from Sri Lanka on a student visa and later claimed refugee status. He was first jailed in 2017 after he tried to fly to Syria to join the Islamic State insurgency.

He was held on various charges including fraud and distributing restricted material after police found Islamic State videos and a hunting knife at his apartment. He pleaded guilty to five charges in June 2018 and was released because of the time he'd already served.

Six weeks later, he was jailed again on new charges and remained in prison until July of this year. He spent his final year in the maximum security Auckland Prison with a small number of other prisoners identified as posing extreme risk.

Rachel Leota, the national commissioner at the Department of Corrections, said Samsudeen would often abuse staff and there had been multiple times when hed thrown feces and urine at them or threatened violence.

At first, Samsudeen was housed at a general prison, the Mt. Eden Corrections Facility. He was shifted to the maximum security prison after an incident in June 2020 when staff tried to move him to an exercise yard.

He argued with staff about which yard he was going to and his behavior escalated, Leota said. He was directed to return to his cell and he struck two officers.

She said he later assaulted another staff member.

Leota said they identified Samsudeen as having potentially violent extremist views but he refused help. She said he did meet twice with an imam from the local Muslim community but didn't engage with him in a meaningful way.

Samsudeen was eventually released from prison in July, and moved to an Auckland mosque after a leader there agreed to take him in.

He was a very, very difficult person to manage, and was increasingly openly hostile and abusive toward probation staff, Leota said.

The case has highlighted shortcomings in New Zealand's counterterrorism laws, especially the difficulty in prosecuting plots. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has said she plans to pass new laws, which were already in the works, by the end of the month.

The case has also raised questions about why Samsudeen wasn't deported sooner after immigration officials in 2019 cancelled his refugee status on the basis he'd used fake documents. Samsudeen had been appealing a deportation ruling at the time he carried out his attack.

Read more from the original source:

Extremist abused and attacked officers in New Zealand prison - ABC News