Level 3

Auckland enters Covid-19 alert level 3

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern made the announcement at a briefing at 9pm last night saying that the alert level changes would come in from 6am today and would be in place for seven days.

She said Cabinet would assess the alert levels but it was likely that Auckland would remain in alert level 3 for the full seven days.

Ardern said the announcement comes after two new Covid-19 community cases that could not be directly linked to earlier cases.

Auckland moves to alert level 3, rest of New Zealand to level 2

The move was announced by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern tonight after a family of three living in the South Auckland suburb of Papatoetoe tested positive for Covid-19.

They are the country's first cases of community transmission since late January when a returned traveller in Northland tested positive after leaving quarantine.

Ardern said the alert change came out of an abundance of caution and would be reviewed every 24 hours.