8 Oct 2021

Covid-19: Northland on tenterhooks after positive case - Sheryl Mai

From Morning Report, 7:08 am on 8 October 2021

The mayor of Whangārei will support a move to level 3 if community transmission of Covid-19 is discovered in Northland.

An Auckland essential worker discovered to have a small trace of the virus while in Whangarei has now returned a second positive result.

The Ministry of Health released a statement last night, saying the person appears to have been in the early stages of infection when first testing positive.

Sheryl Mai says a move to level 3 would be a blow to the regions economy.

"I feel for the business people who are waking up this morning thinking, you know, 'am I still going to be open on Monday' but it is this the right thing, it's shown to work, it contains it, so it would be a necessary step, I would imagine.

"But let's all get those vaccination rates so high that despite a positive case people are still highly protected and because more vaccination gives us more options."