Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has confirmed that there won't be wide-ranging lockdowns when Omicron spreads widely. The Omicron variant is now circulating in Auckland, and is in the South Island after nine people from the same family in Motueka tested positive.
Ardern said the Government knew, from the experience of other countries, that it could take as little as 14 days for Omicron cases to grow from the hundreds into the thousands.
Most of those people who catch Omicron will need to self-isolate at home - and officials are encouraging people to be prepared.
While the red traffic light setting is not as restrictive as previous lockdowns in alert level 3 and 4, there are still rules businesses and people must abide by.
Ardern said mask use, social distancing and restricted sizes of gatherings were a focus.
Red level
Red is the most restrictive traffic light setting, but domestic travel can continue. There will be no more borders around regions, such as the recent Auckland borders.
The red-light setting will be applied to areas where action is deemed necessary to protect vulnerable communities and the health system from unsustainable hospitalisations of people with Covid-19.
And while lockdowns will not be widespread, there could be lockdowns localised to a workplace or school, for example, depending on what is happening in the outbreak.
In red, face coverings are mandatory when travelling on public transport, in retail and to an extent in education. Public facilities and retail outlets are open, with capacity limits.
With a vaccine pass, many businesses and events can have a maximum of 100 people, including hospitality, gyms, weddings and tangihanga. Without passes, hospitality services must remain contactless and the aforementioned gatherings are limited to 25 people.
People should work from home if appropriate, while tertiary education, schools and early childhood care centres remain open with public health measures in place.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern fronted the media on Thursday. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Tertiary students must study remotely if they don't have a vaccine pass.
Gyms and close contact businesses such as hairdressers and beauty salons can open in red as long as public health measures are in place.
Orange level
The orange setting is intended for regions where community transmission is pressuring the health system.
The primary change at orange from red is that, with vaccine passes, there are no limits on gathering sizes for hospitality outlets or at in-home functions, weddings, tangihanga, gyms etc.
Without vaccine passes, hospitality is still contactless while gathering and event size limits are restricted to 50 people.
Hairdressers can open in red also, as long as public health measures are in place. Photo / Michael Craig
Just like any other level, scanning in at locations is required. Face masks are also required on flights, public transport, in shops, and at public venues.
