The Ministry of Health reported 143 new community COVID-19 cases on Sunday, a slight drop from the record 160 infections recorded on Saturday.
But experts have warned New Zealanders to expect those numbers to increase in the coming days.
What you need to know:
- New daily cases have dropped slightly to 143; 135 in Auckland, six in Waikato and two in Northland
- There are no new cases in Christchurch
- A west Auckland retirement village has recorded no more cases after eight residents and a staffer tested positive
- New Zealand full vaccination rates have reached 75 percent, while Auckland is at 80 percent
- Two people at the Jet Park quarantine facility and one person meant to be isolating at home have escaped
- Tonga on Friday recorded its first case of COVID-19, a person who arrived from Christchurch earlier this week
- Thousands gathered at Auckland Domain on Saturday for a third anti-lockdown protest in six weeks, with demonstrators also marching through neighbouring streets
- Click here for all the locations of interest.
These live updates have finished.
7:40pm - A support staff member at Auckland's Macleans College has tested positive for COVID-19.
This person wasn't in contact with any students, the school says.
"All students will be taught remotely on Monday 1 and Tuesday 2 November to allow any impacted staff time to get a COVID test."
7pm - An Auckland couple is heartbroken they can't visit their premature baby currently being cared for in Auckland Hospital's neonatal intensive care unit.
Tiffany Mao and Gray Royston haven't been able to see their 13-day-old son Boston for 10 days because they're close contacts of a COVID-19 case. But they aren't halfway through their ordeal yet - they have to isolate for 28 days because the COVID case is in their house.
Boston was born almost two-and-a-half months early, and his parents are devastated they can't be with him.
"We FaceTime him and he can hear us and he's looking around wondering - I'm going to start crying - he's wondering where mum and dad are, like, not touching him," Mao says.
Royston, Mao, and her younger brother were told to isolate at home four days after Boston was born after Mao's dad tested positive for COVID-19. They've done 10 days so far, and at no point have any of them tested positive or shown any symptoms.
They thought they'd be isolating for two weeks, but have just discovered it's actually 28 days all up.
6:10pm - A person who was meant to isolate at home in New Lynn has escaped, police say.
They are trying to find this person.
"There is nothing to suggest this was related to the gathering at the Auckland Domain, nor are there any Police staff isolating as a result of the gathering," a spokesperson says.
"Police continue to assess and investigate the information gathered and will be taking prosecution action against a number of individuals in the coming days."
6pm - It's time for Newshub Live at 6pm for the latest on the COVID-19 outbreak. Watch online here or on Three.
5:40pm - A new variant of COVID-19 - Delta Plus - has arrived in Australia.
While it's yet to make its way to New Zealand's shores, it's causing concern for some overseas.
5pm - Retail NZ is urging the Government to move to step 2 of the Auckland roadmap this week and to get stores in Auckland and Waikato open, subject to safety measures.
Chief executive Greg Harford says after nearly 11 weeks in lockdown, it's now time to move to step 2 and get shops and services open.
"Retail can operate safely, with customers wearing masks, scanning in, distance being maintained in-store, and great hygiene practices. There is no compelling reason for retail not to open, as the Government has previously announced it would be able to do," he says.
"There is enormous mental and financial harm being caused by the current lockdown. Business owners are finding it increasingly difficult to manage both their mental wellbeing and their finances, while customers can't access the goods they need easily."
Harford says online shopping isn't enough to keep businesses afloat, particularly in the lead-up to Christmas.
"The best thing the Government can do to support the retail community is to get the doors open. Retailers stand ready to do their bit to keep people safe, and are increasingly frustrated that the Government is not willing to announce a timeline, either for the Auckland roadmap, or the new traffic light system," he says.
"There is real concern that the ongoing lockdown could extend up to Christmas or even into the New Year, which would be simply catastrophic for the survival of businesses and the retention of jobs."
4:30pm - Police are on the hunt for two COVID-positive people who have escaped the Jet Park quarantine hotel - the second breach from the facility in less than a month.
The pair fled the facility on Saturday at 4:45pm.
The joint head of managed isolation and quarantine Brigadier Rose King told Newshub it's a "disappointing and unacceptable breach" and an investigation is underway to establish how it happened.
"These facilities are not prisons and these individuals have wilfully absconded. Deliberate breaches like this can put the wider community at risk," she added.
Police confirmed they're working with MIQ officials to try to locate the two people.
"Anyone with information is asked to contact 111 and quote event number P048451440," a police spokesperson told Newshub.
4:05pm - As mentioned earlier, New Zealand is one step closer to reaching the 90 percent goal for people fully vaccinated against COVID-19 after the Ministry of Health announced the country had reached 75 percent on Saturday.
The major milestone of 75 percent fully vaccinated was announced after a total of 42,617 people received the jab on Saturday, with 31,914 of them being second dose.
It was also revealed that Auckland has now reached 80 percent fully vaccinated as Aucklanders look to move to the Government's new traffic light system.
For Auckland to move out of its current lockdown, which it has been in for 74 days since the first case of Delta appeared in the community, it needs all three of its DHBs - Auckland, Counties Manukau and Waitemata - to reach the 90 percent fully vaccinated target.
For the rest of New Zealand, they need all of the DHBs to be at 90 percent before they can move to the traffic light system.
3:30pm - Minister Aupito William Sio says he is "disgusted" with the actions of people who smashed the windows to the offices of the Pasefika Family Health Clinic in Panmure last night.
"They're thugs & terrorists. They're cowards who destroy in the cover of darkness," he tweeted.
"Our Pacific health providers are heroes and won't be intimidated."
2:50pm - National's health spokesperson Dr Shane Reti says Health Minister Andrew Little's failure to add no new adult ICU beds in Auckland in the past 18 months will place increasing pressure on hospitals as Delta spreads.
"The failure to build new ICU beds lies squarely with Andrew Little, who wrote to me that our biggest ICU, Auckland DHB, only has 39 ICU beds and that this number has not changed for the past 18 months," Reti says.
"This seems a small number, so I asked if the numbers were correct when he is consistently reporting 94 standing beds for Auckland DHB. It turns out 39 is the number of adult ICU beds which, to date, are the most useful given the age of those being admitted to ICU.
"Even more worrying is his confirmation that no adult ICU beds were added to in any of the three Auckland DHBs over the past 18 months."
Reti says although only eight active COVID-19 cases triggered an urgent call for ICU nurses in September, non-COVID occupancy rates of around 70 percent and several days of 100 community cases mean they are likely close to moving to surge mode.
"Surge mode means no routine surgeries, investigations or specialist appointments are undertaken," he says.
"Andrew Little needs to report when the Auckland ICUs move to surge mode. This will be a signal that urgent provisions are being made, that we were underprepared and that surgeries and specialist appointments will be even more delayed."
2:10pm - There are four new locations of interest. They are:
- Jaques Four Square Kaiwaka, October 19 from 8:45am to 10am
- The Warehouse Whangarei, October 20 from 9:05am to 10:15am
- Wash and Save Laundromat Ranui, October 24 from 3pm to 5pm
- Sonny's Takeaways Otorohanga, October 27 from 6:45pm to 7:30pm.
1:40pm - The number of cases reported in Auckland today - which was 135 - isn't unexpected and is in line with modelling to date, the Ministry of Health says.
People are urged to check the locations of interest page, which is updated regularly throughout the day, and to get tested if they have any symptoms.
Anyone with symptoms is asked to please get tested even if they are vaccinated.
1:24pm - In Auckland, after a resident at Henderson's Edmonton Meadows retirement village contracted COVID-19 and a total of eight cases emerged from there - no further infections have been reported on Sunday.
"Two residents who have tested positive for COVID-19 have been transferred to hospital for care," a health ministry spokesperson said.
1:20pm - Two of Waikato's cases were reported in Hamilton, two in Ōtorohanga, two in the Te Awamutu/Kihikihi area and one in Kawhia.
"Public health investigations have so far determined links for five of the six reported cases. Investigations are continuing today to establish further links for the remaining one," the health ministry said.
"All are in isolation with public health oversight."
1:15pm - The number of cases in New Zealand's Delta outbreak have now reached 3348. Fifty-six people are currently in hospital with COVID-19, two of whom are in intensive care.
1:08pm - Most of Sunday's new infections are in Auckland apart from half a dozen in Waikato and two in Northland. The Northland cases were notified on Saturday but being added to Sunday's numbers.
"The reported number of cases in Auckland is not unexpected and is line with modelling to date," the health ministry said.
"People are urged to closely monitor the ministry's locations of interest webpage, which is updated regularly."
1:06pm - There are 143 new community cases of COVID-19, the Ministry of Health says.
"There are no new community cases to report in Christchurch," a ministry spokesperson said.
"Yesterday, two vaccination milestones were reached with 75 percent of eligible New Zealanders now fully vaccinated and Auckland now has reached 80 percent fully vaccinated."
12:45pm - While we wait for Sunday's COVID-19 case numbers, click here for a wrap of Saturday's coronavirus developments.
12:30pm - We are half an hour away from finding out Sunday's latest COVID-19 case data.
The case numbers are due via a press release at 1pm and we will bring you them as soon as they come to hand.
12:15pm - A public health specialist is warning New Zealanders to continue to expect COVID-19 case numbers to rise over the coming days.
Lesley Gray, from the University of Otago in Wellington, is painting a grim picture of what is to come when the Minstry of Health announces cases in the coming week.
12pm - The first case of the new strain of the Delta variant of COVID-19 known as 'Delta Plus' was reported in Australia on Saturday.
It was detected at a government quarantine hotel in Sydney and is so far the only case of the variant detected in Australia.
11:45am - The National Party is calling for a Royal Commission of Inquiry into a lack of preparation for the Delta variant of COVID-19 arriving on New Zealand's shores.
Leader Judith Collins said the Government went "all in" on its elimination strategy, assuming it would work to beat the Delta variant.
11:30am - New Zealand drug buying agency Pharmac has negotiated an agreement with pharmaceutical supplier Roche to purchase the Ronapreve COVID-19 treatment.
The antibody-based therapy from Roche Products will save lives and cut time in hospitals, according to Health Minister Andrew Little.
11:15am - Multiple new COVID-19 locations of interest have been added to the Ministry of Health's list on Sunday morning.
They include two Four Square supermarkets in Hamilton.
