Protesters at Parliament do not represent most of the country's views and evicting them from Parliament is a decision for police, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says.
While every New Zealander had a right to protest, there were also rules about what happened on Parliament's forecourt.
"We would expect people to have behaviours that wouldn't disrupt others," she told reporters today.
She described the protest as "certainly not the largest I've seen".
Ardern said she has still been able to do her job despite the protests.
Police had the skills and expertise to deal with the protesters, and it wasn't unusual to have this activity outside Parliament.
It was important to have balance so people in Wellington "can live their lives", and police were endeavouring to do this.
Ardern said "obviously" police need to manage the protest if it started affecting local businesses and people's ability to move around.
"I've certainly seen a lot of emotion in those protests," Ardern said.
She believed the protest did not reflect most people's view and it was time for the protesters to move on.
Ardern said people feeling deeply about an issue was by no means new.
"This is not representative where the vast majority of where New Zealanders are," she said.
She was not in a position to make a judgment on whether the protests will turn into a super spreader event.
Ardern said no one would want politicians to dictate how protests are managed. "It's not for us, it's for police." She said the police's job is to ensure protests are conducted in a safe way.
She noted that well over 90 per cent of New Zealanders were fully vaccinated, which showed a willingness from the vast majority to get protected.
On the country's Omicron response, Ardern said clinical decisions about the gap between doses were for the experts are were not political.
The decision to vaccinate children rested with parents and it was important they had the right advice.
The public health team would advise the Government when it was time to move the country to phase 2 of the response to the Omicron outbreak.
Ardern said no one wanted to have to continue to use restrictions longer than needed, so if they are in a position to remove them, they would.
New Zealand was still at a point where Covid cases are low, but they will grow and the best protection will be a booster.
Overseas we've seen unvaccinated people are causing wider impacts on health services, she said.
The 90 per cent vaccination milestone has now been passed for Pasifika communities.
Meanwhile the Government has announced today that workers in critical businesses will no longer have to isolate if they are identified as a close contact, providing they return daily negative rapid antigen tests.
A new close contact exemption scheme to help keep critical supply chains running though Omicron has been announced by Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins and Associate Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall this morning.
Businesses will self-assess against criteria to join the scheme.
Close contacts who work alone can also continue to operate in a bubble of one such as farmers or sole traders including plumbers and residential builders providing they are also vaccinated. These guidelines applied to any workers, not just critical workers, and they were not required to return regular tests.
The announcement comes as protesters continued to camp on Parliament's grounds for a second night despite being issued a trespass notice yesterday afternoon.
Further arrests are happening this morning as police attempt to clear the area. Molesworth St is closed and some businesses in the area have also been unable to open due to the disruption caused by the protesters.
About 40 police officers are at the scene and are speaking through the megaphone that the protesters are trespassing: "Please leave now," they can be heard saying.
On Tuesday, Ardern said the Omicron outbreak was likely to accelerate quickly and peak in March and the plans announced today will outline how the Government plans to respond to growing case numbers.
The comments came as forecasters estimated more than one million New Zealanders would be infected with Omicron and hundreds would die within the next few months.
New Zealand is currently in the first phase of a planned three-stage response to the Omicron Covid-19 variant.
Meanwhile, Auckland remains the epicentre, with more than 1400 active cases across the region's three DHBs. Covid-19 continues to spread around the country too with schools in all corners of the country reporting positive cases.
Two classes at Ilminster Intermediate in Gisborne have been told to stay home today after two students tested positive for Covid-19 late last night.
Hauora Tairāwhiti chief executive Jim Green said work was in full swing to identify close contacts of the cases and locations of interest.
The students were told to stay home to reduce any potential spread and allow public health to understand the movements of the students.
"I understand parents may feel anxious but students should continue to attend school unless contacted by the school or public health staff.
"The advice remains for everyone in Tairāwhiti that if you have any symptoms at all, please get tested today and self-isolate at home until you've received a negative result."
Papatoetoe High School, which was at the epicentre of one of last year's outbreaks in Auckland, has also had a member of its school test positive for Covid-19.
In a statement on social media yesterday, the school said it had identified and contacted all close contacts directly and provided them with information on what to do.
Both schools remained open for those who were not deemed close contacts.
Yesterday, the Ministry of Health announced there were 204 new community cases of Covid-19.
Community cases were reported in Northland (8), Auckland (135), Waikato (35), Lakes (2), Bay of Plenty (11), Taranaki (1), MidCentral (2), Wellington (3), Hutt Valley (3), Nelson Marlborough (1) and Canterbury (3).
Counties Manukau DHB has the highest number of reported cases with 892, while Auckland DHB has 302 and Waitematā currently has 220.
In total, there are 2209 active cases - which are cases identified in the past 21 days and who have not yet recovered.
As cases grow in Auckland, 1218 Covid cases in the region are currently isolating at home.
New Zealand is halfway through what the PM has dubbed the "big boost week" where an extra million people became eligible on Friday after the Government shortened the gap between vaccinations from four to three months.
"Boosters are the most important determinant of how we will weather the Omicron storm," the PM said earlier this week.
Immunologist Professor Graham Le Gros said Kiwis should not be scared about getting vaccinated and getting the booster shot in particular.
Speaking to TVNZ's Breakfast show, he said the side effects being reported by those getting the booster shot - such as pain on the arm, lethargy, nausea and swelling under the arm - is not as bad as getting Covid itself.
Le Gros said those reactions were linked to the body's immune system making an immune response.
"It's not a bad thing and that's why I say: "Take some Nurofen or Panadol and you'll get through it much better."
On the more serious but still rare side effects, Le Gros said heart palpitations or side effects related to the heart were more commonly associated with young men.
The benefits of getting the booster shot far outweighed getting Covid-19, however, he said.
"The vaccine is that right kind of immune shield."
Meanwhile, flight NZ614 from Queenstown to Auckland is the latest high-risk location to be listed by the Ministry of Health and anyone who was on the flight on Sunday, February 6, between 9.19am and 11.03am is deemed a close contact and must get tested and isolate.
Two Auckland gyms were also identified as locations of interest on Wednesday night.
F45 and Snap Fitness in Takanini were visited by an infected person over five days in early February.
Anyone who was at these gyms during the specified time are considered close contacts and must self-isolate and get tested.
Mikey's body was found by a dog walker at Hōkio Beach early one February morning.