Covid 19 coronavirus: Border issues a 'catalogue of cock-ups' as National's Michael Woodhouse calls for transparency

The series of stories about people leaving border facilities without being tested has been slammed as "a catalogue of cock-ups" by National's health spokesman.

Michael Woodhouse has also defended going public with his information before informing the Ministry of Health there was another close contact of a notifiable disease.

"I reject any accusations that this was political. What I have done is drawn to the public's attention, a glaring omission in the process. That's my job as a politician."

Woodhouse said he didn't think Health Minister David Clark would have "paid that much attention to it" if he told him first he knew the two sisters who later tested positive for Covid-19 had hugged their helper after getting lost on their trip to Wellington.

"My job is to hold the Government to account and I believe I've done that."

Since Woodhouse's revelation in the House on Wednesday afternoon, the ministry has confirmed the women had in fact made contact with others on their journey.

Woodhouse said he'd uncovered more information about a woman who was moved from managed self-isolation to Wiri Prison during lockdown.

He said she was tested but the results hadn't come back before she was released. Her tests came back positive and there was "a scrambled effort" to track her down, Woodhouse said.

The police then used CCTV to trace her licence plate number and later found her in Palmerston North.

Woodhouse understands the woman had "many close contacts".

"That was several weeks ago. The ministry knows about it, but you don't."

The Herald has asked the police for confirmation of this account but was referred to the Ministry of Health which has not acknowledged or responded to the request for information.

Woodhouse said questions needed to be asked about the degree to which the public had been kept informed about border breaches "in a comprehensive manner".

"The ministry should take their own advice about not getting complacent.

"This is a catalogue of cock-ups, frankly, that has led to unnecessary risk being imposed on unsuspecting members of the New Zealand public."

In the past 24 hours, a number of stories have emerged about people leaving border facilities without being tested or after there was a ban on compassionate leave for funerals and tangi.

On June 10, a group of 10 travellers were granted special exemption to attend the funeral of a Mongrel Mob relative in Hamilton.

They were then required, with their other family members, to return to the quarantine hotel, the Pullman, in Auckland afterwards.

Instead, the pair, aged 8 and 19, fled. They later tested negative.

A Christchurch funeral director said a group of "nine or 10" people were let out of border facilities early to attend a funeral but he refused them entry, Stuff has reported.

And TVNZ has reported one of the border facilities held a birthday party for one of its young guests, with children from different flights in attendance despite a ban on mingling in isolation.