Coronavirus: Mad Butcher Sir Peter Leitch calls for self-isolation crackdown

Sir Peter Leitch of Mad Butcher fame says Kiwis should take the coronavirus outbreak much more seriously. And he has a message for "idiots" who are still "out and about".

New Zealand's "old mate" spoke to Laura, Sam and Toni on The Hits this morning from his Waiheke Island home, where he is currently in self-isolation with his wife, Janice.

"We're taking the Government's advice, we're just chilling out, we're not going out," Leitch said.

"I love going out to breakfast. One of my claims to fame is I post my breakfast on my Facebook page and I haven't been out for over a week.

"We've just stayed at home ... very strange times."

Asked what he thought of people who were still out and about, he said "those people are idiots, of course.

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"The Government should get really tough and start locking them up or throwing them in jail.

"It's not a laughing matter, this is serious - we've got an epidemic on our hands."

Sam asked him if it was fair to say the older generation are stubborn when it comes to people telling them what to do.

"I think they're stupid, you've got to heed the warning," Leitch said.

He praised Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's "outstanding" leadership over the past few weeks and became emotional when speaking about his two daughters.

He told the hosts his girls have been calling him every day telling him to wash his hands.

"I've never washed my hands so often!"

When Toni asked how he was coping mentally without being able to socialise with people, he said he was "absolutely fine".

"You can ring people ... people will pass my house and I'll stand on the deck and talk to them.

"I'm 75 going on 76 and I've never known anything like this."