The Ministry of Health has announced a "sharp increase" in COVID-19 cases with 810 infections and 32 people in hospital on Sunday. It is the fourth straight record day of cases and increased hospitalisations.
The ministry confirmed in its 1pm update that there are currently no notified positive cases linked to the protest, as the stalemate between anti-COVID vaccine mandate protesters and police continues for a sixth straight day, despite heavy rain and wind smashing the capital.
What you need to know:
- There were a record 810 new community cases in New Zealand on Sunday.
- Location of new community cases: 623 are in Auckland, 81 in Waikato, 15 in Wellington, 14 in Southern, 13 in Northland, 11 in Bay of Plenty, 11 in Lakes, 10 in Hutt Valley, eight in Hawke's Bay, six in Whanganui, five in Taranaki, three in MidCentral, three in Canterbury, three in Tairawhiti, two in Nelson Marlborough and two in South Canterbury.
- Number of new cases identified at the border: 18 (five of which are historical)
- Cases in hospital: Total number 32 (30 of whom have active infections); 15 are in Auckland, eight in Middlemore, four in North Shore, one in Tauranga, one in Whangārei, one in Rotorua, one in Wellington and one in Christchurch.
- You can see the latest locations of interest here
These live updates are now over.
8:12pm - Wellington District Commander Superintendent Corrie Parnell says police will have a "highly visible presence" around Parliament grounds on Monday to reassure people going to work and school.
"We will have foot patrols in around the area of the railway station, up Molesworth Street, and streets adjoining the protest activity," he says in a statement.
"We encourage commuters to the area, to plan for continued traffic disruption, but we want everyone coming into the city to feel safe."
Supt Parnell says there have been no further arrests.
5:45pm - Police say they can't arrest their way out of the Wellington protest - and it won't be resolved overnight.
Around 400-500 people remain in tents, after peaking at a crowd strength of around 3000.
Speaking at a media standup on Sunday, Wellington District Commander Superintendent Corrie Parnell said they are working to restore it to a "lawful protest".
He said police are appealing to key leaders to engage with police and move vehicles to a staging area in order to reopen Wellington's streets.
"To date that hasn't been entirely successful," he said.
"This is unprecedented territory in terms of an unlawful occupation and protest at Parliament."
Supt Parnell was also asked if police were involved in Speaker Trevor Mallard's decision to play music and turn on sprinklers in an attempt to drive the protesters off.
He replied this was not a tactic police would endorse.
4:40pm - New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has condemned Speaker Trevor Mallard's efforts to disperse the Parliament protesters.
"We support the right to protest and freedom of speech. We don't support violent or offensive behaviour," he tweeted.
"That said, Trevor Mallard's juvenile, undignified, and illegal behaviour by turning cold sprinklers on people, including children, and blasting loud music must be censored.
"Parliament is meant to be the people's place. Mallard doesn't get to decide who should have those fundamental rights and who doesn't."
4pm - The Ministry of Health reported 810 new COVID-19 cases today - a large rise on yesterday's record 454 cases.
The expected uptick in confirmed cases is almost double the seven-day rolling average of 432 cases. Here's the expert reaction.
Dr David Welch, senior lecturer at the University of Auckland's Centre for Computational Evolution, says the case numbers over the last few days suggest that Omicron is starting to spread more rapidly, in line with overseas outbreaks where case numbers have doubled around every three days.
"The early spread here was likely limited by contact tracing efforts but with higher case numbers, contact tracing is not able to keep up. We also see a wide geographic spread of cases showing that the virus is spreading throughout the country," he says in a Science Media Centre statement.
"We can continue to limit the impacts of spread by following the basics of mask-wearing, getting tested if symptomatic, meeting only in well-ventilated spaces, getting vaccinated and boosted, and scanning in wherever we go. Anyone who is eligible for a vaccination or a booster shot should get it as soon as possible as we are all likely to encounter COVID in the coming weeks."
3:15pm - The Ministry of Health has announced 11 new locations of interest.
Of the 11 new locations of interest eight are considered 'high risk'. Those locations are:
Chilli Masala Hutt Central *PATRONS ONLY* - Tuesday, 8 February from 6pm to 7:30pm
Cafe Lane Paraparaumu Beach - Sunday, 6 February from 12:25pm to 1:30pm
The Bunker Restaurant Queenstown - Monday, 7 February from 3:30am to 4am
Zephyr Queenstown *PATRONS ONLY* - Monday, 7 February from 2:30am to 3:30am
Jetstar Flight JQ258 Wellington to Auckland - Monday, 7 February from 12:15 pm to 1:20pm
Thai Kai Restaurant Paraparaumu - Saturday, 5 February from 5:22pm to 6:30pm
Jetstar Flight JQ292 Queenstown to Auckland - Monday, 7 February from 11am to 12:45pm
Cobb & Co Whakatane *DINING ROOM PATRONS ONLY* - Saturday, 5 February from 5:52pm to 7:30pm
The ministry said if you were on the Queenstown Jetstar flight, you are a close contact if you were seated in rows 21, 22, 23, 24 or 25. They also said if you were on the Wellington Jetstar flight and seated in rows 9,10,11,12, and 13 you are a close contact.
If you are a close contact, the ministry as you to "self-isolate, test immediately and on day 5 after you were exposed at this location of interest. Further isolation and testing requirements will be provided by Public Health".
There are three exposure events where the ministry is asking people there at the exposure times to self-monitor:
The Shelter Bar & Kitchen Frankton - Monday, 7 February from 11am to 9pm and Sunday, 6 February from 11am to 3:30pm
Tap Room Cargo Gantley's Pub & Café Arthurs Point - Sunday, 6 February from 5:30pm to 8:30pm
For the relevant dates, times and public health advice - and updates to existing locations of interest - click here.
3pm - An update on the protest outside Parliament in Wellington. Speaker Trevor Mallard has continued to play music in a bid to get protesters to leave.
The baby shark song, Frozen’s Let It Go, You’re Beautiful by James Blunt and a version of Celine Dion’s My Heart Will Go On has been played throughout the day on repeat from speakers.
The weather is still wild in the capital with heavy rain and wind soaking protesters with most of them wearing rain jackets or using umbrellas.
There are several hundred protesters outside Parliament braving the conditions with chants of "freedom" heard several times during the day and protesters dancing and singing along to the music.
There were rumours circulating online that suggested a COVID positive woman had turned up to the protest but the Ministry of Health denied that claim in their 1pm COVID press release saying, "there are currently no notified positive cases linked to the protest".
Lots of protesters had signs with some saying: "End the Mandate" and "NZ Police we are doing this for you" as a small number of police watched over the protesters.
2:45pm - Over in Australia, Queensland has seen a major spike in COVID-19 cases with 7,311 new infections in the last 24 hours.
Queensland has almost doubled its daily COVID case numbers in the past 24 hours, after announcing 3,660 infections on Saturday.
Queensland Health said that there were four new coronavirus deaths down from the 13 recorded on Saturday.
Hospitilastions have also dropped with 496 people in hospital on Sunday compared to 538 on Saturday.
There are currently 45 people in ICU, down from 51 on Saturday, with 33,289 active COVID cases in Queensland.
2:31pm - The Ministry of Health has announced five new 'high risk' locations of interest.
The locations are:
Burger Culture Nelson *DINE IN PATRONS ONLY* - Tuesday, 8 February from 6:30pm to 8:30pm
Kismet Cocktail & Whisky Bar Nelson *DINE IN PATRONS ONLY* - Tuesday, 8 February from 8:30pm to 10pm
Zephyr Queenstown *PATRONS ONLY* - Wednesday, 9 February from 2:30am to 3:30am
Pog Mahones Irish Pub & Restaurant Queenstown *PATRONS ONLY* - Wednesday, 9 February from 12:45am to 2:45am
Jago Town The Base Te Rapa *PATRONS ONLY* - Saturday, 5 February from 12:15pm to 3:40pm
If you are a close contact, the ministry asks you to "self-isolate, test immediately and on day 5 after you were exposed at this location of interest. Further isolation and testing requirements will be provided by Public Health".
For the relevant dates, times and public health advice - and updates to existing locations of interest - click here.
2:09pm - The ministry has not provided a regional update on Sunday. They have given an update on the Wellington protest:
There are a number of rumours circulating about possible cases of COVID-19 linked to the protest at Parliament Grounds in Wellington.
Wellington’s Regional Public Health Unit has confirmed that there are currently no notified positive cases linked to the protest. However, we encourage everyone to be vigilant and to get a test if they become unwell with symptoms of COVID-19.
For details of testing centres operating in the Wellington region, please visit Healthpoint.
Ministry of Health website
Please be aware that the case details on the Ministry’s website will not be updated today. They will instead be included in the 1pm web update tomorrow which will cover the previous 48 hours.
2:07pm - Here is the latest data from the Ministry of Health on the outbreak and vaccination campaign:
COVID-19 vaccine update
- Vaccines administered to date (percentage of eligible people): 4,052,799 first doses (96%); 3,982,623 second doses (95%); 1,891,241 booster doses (59%).
- Vaccines administered yesterday: 554 first doses; 1,147 second doses; 4,256 paediatric doses; 49,523 booster doses.
- Māori (percentage of eligible people aged 12+): 516,079 first doses (90%); 492,377 second doses (86%).
- Pacific Peoples (percentage of eligible people aged 12+): 279,094 first doses (97%); 272,058 second doses (95%).
- Paediatric vaccines administered to date (percentage of 5-11-year-olds): 213,517 first doses (45%)
- Māori (percentage of eligible people aged 5-11): 29,843 first doses (26%)
- Pacific Peoples (percentage of eligible people aged 5-11): 17,592 first doses (36%)
Vaccination rates for all DHBs (percentage of eligible people aged 12 +)
- Northland DHB: First doses (90%); second doses (87%)
- Auckland Metro DHBs: First doses (97%); second doses (96%)
- Waikato DHB: First doses (95%); second doses (93%)
- Bay of Plenty DHB: First doses (95%); second doses (93%)
- Lakes DHB: First doses (93%); second doses (91%)
- MidCentral DHB: First doses (97%); second doses (95%)
- Tairāwhiti DHB: First doses (93%); second doses (90%)
- Whanganui DHB: First doses (92%); second doses (89.9%)
- Hawke’s Bay: First doses (97%); second doses (94%)
- Taranaki DHB: First doses (95%); second doses (93%)
- Wairarapa DHB: First doses (97%); second doses (95%)
- Capital and Coast DHB: First doses (99%); second doses (98%)
- Hutt Valley DHB: First doses (97%); second doses (95%)
- Nelson Marlborough DHB: First doses (97%); second doses (95%)
- West Coast DHB: First doses (93%); second doses (91%)
- Canterbury DHB: First doses (99%); second doses (98%)
- South Canterbury DHB: First doses (95%); second doses (94%)
- Southern DHB: First doses (98%); second doses (96%)
Hospitalisations
- Cases in hospital: Total Number 32 (30 of whom have active infections): Whangārei: 1; North Shore: 4; Middlemore: 8; Auckland: 15; Tauranga: 1; Rotorua: 1, Wellington 1, Christchurch: 1.
- Average age of current hospitalisations: 62
- Cases in ICU or HDU: 0
- Vaccination status of current hospitalisations (Northern Region only, excluding Emergency Departments): Unvaccinated or not eligible (3 cases / 12%); partially immunised <7 days from second dose or have only received one dose (1 case / 4%); fully vaccinated at least 7 days before being reported as a case (10 cases / 40%); unknown (11 cases / 44%).
Cases
- Seven day rolling average of community cases: 432
- Seven day rolling average of border cases: 25
- Number of new community cases: 810
- Location of new community cases*: Northland (13), Auckland (623), Waikato (81), Bay of Plenty (11), Lakes (11), Hawke’s Bay (8), MidCentral (3), Whanganui (6), Taranaki (5), Tairawhiti (3), Wellington (15), Hutt Valley (10), Nelson Marlborough (2), Canterbury (3), South Canterbury (2), Southern (14).
- Number of new cases identified at the border: 18 (five of which are historical)
- Location of origin of border cases: Albania (1), Sri Lanka (1), Germany (1), United Arab Emirates (1), Singapore (2), Philippines (2), Australia (1), Iran (4).
- Number of active community cases (total): 4,072 (cases identified in the past 21 days and not yet classified as recovered)
- Confirmed cases (total): 20,228
* Please note, the Ministry of Health’s daily reported cases may differ slightly from those reported at a DHB or local public health unit level. This is because of different reporting cut off times and the assignment of cases between regions, for example when a case is tested outside their usual region of residence. Total numbers will always be the formal daily case tally as reported to the WHO.
Tests
- Number of tests total (last 24 hours): 22,196
- Tests rolling average (last 7 days): 20,056
- Number of Rapid Antigen Tests in New Zealand: 7.0 million (Please note that this number is not updated over the weekend and reflects the number of tests as of Friday.)
2:05pm - The Ministry has provided an updated about their "Big Boost" campaign:
The sharp increase in new cases today is another reminder that, as expected, the highly transmissible Omicron variant is now spreading in our communities as we have seen in other countries.
Our expectation is that cases will continue to increase over the coming weeks and we’re asking people to do all they can to slow the spread of the virus and protect themselves and their whānau.
The most important step anyone can take to prepare for Omicron is to book their vaccine, whether it’s their first, second or booster. Every dose counts and lowers the chances of getting very sick and being hospitalised.
We are also continuing to remind people to do the basics well – staying home if you’re unwell, wearing a mask, physical distancing and scanning in using the NZ COVID Tracer app when you’re out and about.
Anyone with cold or flu symptoms that could be COVID-19 is asked to get a test and isolate at home until a negative result is returned.
The most common early symptoms of the Omicron variant are a sore or scratchy throat, and a runny nose. Even if you develop a small sniffle, please get a test.
The Big Boost
Thank you to the more than 214,000 New Zealanders who have so far rolled up their sleeves to get their booster shot during ‘The Big Boost’ – our national week of action where we’re making it as easy as possible to get your booster, with pop-up vaccination centres and extended opening hours.
February is a critical month to get New Zealand boosted – and we’re encouraging every New Zealander aged 18 and over who had their 2nd vaccination at least 3 months ago to get their booster as soon as possible. You can access a Pfizer booster dose in the same way as any other dose, booking online via www.BookMyVaccine.nz visiting a walk-in or drive-thru vaccination clinic, or by calling the COVID Vaccination Healthline on 0800 28 29 26 (8am to 8pm, 7 days a week).
2:04pm - The Ministry of Health has announced a major spike of COVID-19 cases with 810 new infections and 32 people in hospital on Sunday.
It is the fourth straight day of record cases. Of the new community infections, 623 are in Auckland, 81 in Waikato, 15 in Wellington, 14 in Southern, 13 in Northland, 11 in Bay of Plenty, 11 in Lakes, 10 in Hutt Valley, eight in Hawke's Bay, six in Whanganui, five in Taranaki, three in MidCentral, three in Canterbury, three in Tairawhiti, two in Nelson Marlborough and two in South Canterbury.
The ministry announced there are 32 people in hospital with none in ICU or HDU.
Of the 32 people in hospital: 15 are in Auckland, eight in Middlemore, four in North Shore, one in Tauranga, one in Whangārei, one in Rotorua, one in Wellington and one in Christchurch.
There are 18 cases of COVID-19 identified at the border, five of which are historical.
1:52pm - We are still waiting for the ministry to release the daily COVID case numbers, we'll bring them to you the moment we get them.
1:23pm - While we wait for the ministry to announce Sunday's COVID-19 case numbers very shortly, the Ministry of Health has announced six new locations of interest
Four of those locations of interest are considered 'high risk'. Those locations are:
Pier Restaurant & Bar Queenstown - Sunday, 6 February from 12pm to 1pm
Jetstar Flight JQ292 Queenstown to Auckland - Monday, 7 February from 11am to 12:45pm
Zephyr Queenstown - Wednesday, 9 February from 2:30am to 3:30am
Jetstar Flight JQ258 Wellington to Auckland - Monday, 7 February from 12:15pm to 1:20pm
The ministry said if you were on the Jetstar flight from Queenstown and were in rows 21, 22, 23, 24 or 25 you are considered a close contact. If you were on the Jetstar flight from Wellington and in rows 9,10,11,12, and 13 you are considered a close contact.
The ministry also said only customers at Zephyr and anyone at the restaurant in Queenstwon during the exposure time is considered a close contact.
If you are a close contact, the ministry asks you to "self-isolate, test immediately and on day 5 after you were exposed at this location of interest. Further isolation and testing requirements will be provided by Public Health".
The other locations of interest where the ministry says you only need to self-monitor for symptoms are:
Lone Star Cafe & Bar Queenstown - Sunday, 6 February from 6pm to 7pm
Pog Mahones Irish Pub & Restaurant Queenstown - Monday, 7 February from 5pm to 7pm
For the relevant dates, times and public health advice - and updates to existing locations of interest - click here.
1:12pm - The Cook Islands has announced that a person was "likely infectious" while in Rarotonga after returning a positive COVID-19 test result in New Zealand.
Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown said the person was in Rarotonga earlier this week.
"Late last night the Ministry of Health in New Zealand advised that a flight that left Rarotonga last Monday on 7 February - is a place of interest; after a passenger on that flight tested positive for the Omicron variant of Covid-19 after arriving back in New Zealand," Brown said.
"The person's partner tested negative, and three friends traveling with them have yet to be tested."
It is likely that the person who tested positive was infectious while in the Cook Islands and further likely that the virus is in our community, Brown added.
The infected person was in Rarotonga for eight days and is fully vaccinated.
The person first developed symptoms in the early hours of Monday 7 February, the day they departed Rarotonga.
Brown said there could be "silent transmission" where our high vaccination rate is so protective that "people get COVID but so mildly that they do not realise they have it".
"We have prepared for this, and we will follow the procedures and processes to deal with this.
"The fact that we have a high percentage of our people vaccinated will give us substantial protection from serious illness."
Brown said the Cook Islands borders will remain open with the current protocols and precautions in place.
12:52pm - ACT has slammed Trevor Mallard and called on Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to sideline the Speaker of the House for his "prankster" comments involving James Blunt.
"The Speaker of the House is one of the most important constitutional roles in New Zealand and it's time for Trevor Mallard to behave like it," ACT Leader David Seymour said.
"But we can't really blame Trevor. He is simply filling a void left by the absent Prime Minister. Rather than ridiculing the protestors, she needs to be constantly updating the COVID response as new evidence emerges. Ideally, the Prime Minister would be focused on hope and healing, but instead, Labour is offering absence and immaturity."
Seymour said he didn't agree with the way the protest had been carried out but said Mallard's behaviour has been "childish".
"I don't agree with the way this protest has been carried out. It's entirely unacceptable to threaten people, block the road and cause damage to property," Seymour said.
"But for Rt Hon Trevor Mallard to turn on the sprinklers and play annoying music is funny at first then pathetic the more you think about it.
"It's like he thinks he's Macaulay Culkin in Home Alone and few silly pranks will scare the trespassers away. What's next? Placing buckets of water on doors left ajar?
"He's even taken to Twitter saying he will take suggestions from the public about what music to play. New Zealand deserves more maturity from the Speaker of the House.
"Not only are Mallard's antics immature, not only are the ineffective, they have made a serious situation much worse. His petty behaviour has only encouraged the protesters further. Mallard needs to tell us whether he sought police advice before taking these actions.
"He also needs to answer if he has copyright approval for the music. We know he didn't get advice from the Police, so did he take the Steven Joyce approach and it's just "pretty legal.
"All MPs have chosen to ignore these protesters. Except for Mallard who has waived a red rag to them."
Seymour has called on Mallard to leave the response to the protest to police.
"Trevor Mallard needs to leave the response to Police. It's not for politicians to interfere with silly pranks," he said.
"Meanwhile, the Beehive is under siege, and where is our Prime Minister? Jacinda has been MIA for the past few days created a vacuum for Trevor. Where is the Prime Minister and why isn't she showing leadership?
"The kind of scenes we are witnessing could have been avoided if the Government had taken ACT's advice on vaccines, mandates, and testing. Mandates may reassure people that others will not pass on COVID, but so does regular testing.
"Since the Government insists on mandates, they should be vaxx or test. It would have been easier if testing was more widely available, also in line with ACT policy.
"It's time for us to ask some serious questions about New Zealand's response.
"Community case numbers are now far outstripping numbers at the border. Yesterday there were 454 cases in the community but only 8 in MIQ. It's clear MIQ no longer makes sense when so many are isolating at home with Omicron.
"Instead of decimating the horticulture industry with another season of fruit rotting on the ground, we should let people come in to work.
"As the numbers change, the response needs to change with it. Evidence from the UK is now showing tested infection rates twice as high for vaccinated as unvaccinated. If vaccination does not affect transmission of Omicron, then what is the justification for vaccine requirements?
"In Australia, hospitalisations and ICU peaked at much lower rates than was expected. If our hospital system is not under threat, then why are we still at Red?
"We need to start looking at our response and whether it's still fit for purpose. We need to talk like adults, look at the facts and not get distracted by silly pranks and fringe groups.
"Only when we have these discussions, follow the science and move quickly will we be able to heal and have hope for the future."
12:40pm - As usual, the Ministry of Health will release its daily statement with the latest updates on the COVID-19 outbreak at around 1pm.
Stay tuned, as we will publish the newest developments live as soon as the statement is available.
12:30pm - The Ministry of Health has announced three new locations of interest.
Two of the locations of interest are considered 'high risk'. These locations are:
Jetstar Flight JQ258 Wellington to Auckland - Monday, 7 February from 12:15pm to 1:20pm
CityFitness Upper Hutt Central - Thursday, 10 February from 1:40pm to 3:10pm
The ministry said you are a close contact if you were seated in rows 9,10,11,12, and 13 on the Jetstar flight or if you were at CityFitness during the exposure time.
If you are a close contact the ministry asks you to "self-isolate, test immediately and on day 5 after you were exposed at this location of interest. Further isolation and testing requirements will be provided by Public Health".
The other location of interest is:
Queenstown Airport Frankton - Sunday, 6 February from 7:13pm to 8:30pm
If you were at Queenstown airport during the exposure time, the ministry asks you to self-monitor for COVID-19 symptoms for 10 days after you were exposed.
For the relevant dates, times and public health advice - and updates to existing locations of interest - click here.
12:21pm - Speaker of the House Trevor Mallard has responded to James Blunt's hilariously offer to play his music to deter the demonstrators from Parliament's grounds.
Blunt offered to help New Zealand officials in response to a BBC article about authorities playing Barry Manilow songs on repeat in an attempt to get rid of the protesters - who are now occupying Parliament's grounds for a sixth day.
"Give me a shout if this doesn't work. @NZPolice," Blunt said on Twitter.
Mallard responded on Twitter saying he accepted the offer but wondered if it was fair on New Zealand Police.
"@JamesBlunt we will take up your very kind offer. My only doubt is whether it is fair to our @nzpolice officers but I think they will be able to cope," Mallard said on Twitter.
One person jokingly responded saying: "NZ Police can be given earplugs to ensure you meet your obligations under the Health and Safety at Work Act".
11:54am - The Ministry of Health has announced two new 'high risk' locations of interest.
The locations of interest are:
Jetstar Flight JQ292 Queenstown to Auckland - Monday, 7 February 11am to 12:45pm
Pog Mahones Irish Pub & Restaurant Queenstown - Sunday, 6 February from 11am to 12pm
The ministry said you are a close contact if you were seated in rows 21, 22, 23, 24 or 25 and if you were at the Irish Pub at the exposure time.
The ministry asks anyone who is a close contact to "self-isolate, test immediately and on day 5 after you were exposed. Further isolation and testing requirements will be provided by Public Health".
For the relevant dates, times and public health advice - and updates to existing locations of interest - click here.
11:28am - In Victoria, they have seen a very small drop in cases on Sunday with 7,223 new infections recorded in the last 24 hours down from 7,224 on Saturday.
Victoria Health announced that there were 18 coronavirus deaths on Sunday, down from 19 recorded on Saturday.
Hospitalisations have also slightly dropped with 465 people in hospital compared to 487 on Saturday.
There are currently 181 people in ICU, which is a significant increase from Saturday when they had only 79.
There are currently 54,494 active cases in Victoria down from 55,102 on Saturday.
11:10am - In Australia, New South Wales has recorded a drop in COVID-19 cases with 6,686 new infections in the last 24 hours.
There has also been a drop in coronavirus deaths with 22 announced on Sunday, down from 32 recorded on Saturday.
NSW Health announced that hospitalisations have reduced for the 14th straight day with 1,614 people in hospital, compared to 1,650 on Saturday with 93 in ICU.
10:55am - We have a live stream of all the action from the protest in Wellington above. The audio is turned on so please be advised that it could contain language that may offend.
10:35am - An update on the ongoing protest outside Parliament.
Protesters can be heard shouting "freedom" while the music continues to be played. Protesters - who are in rain jackets and have umbrellas to deal with the wild Wellington weather - are dancing and singing along to the music while also holding flags and signs.
Let it go, the theme song for Frozen, and Baby Shark continues to be played around Parliament grounds at the request of Speaker of the House Trevor Mallard.
10:19am - The Ministry of Health has announced two new 'high risk' locations of interest.
The locations are:
Pog Mahones Irish Pub & Restaurant Queenstown - From Saturday, 5 February 5pm to Sunday, 6 February 12am
Jetstar Flight JQ235 Auckland to Christchurch - Thursday, 10 February from 1:35pm to 3pm
The ministry said you're a close contact if you were seated in rows 23, 24, 25, 26 or 27 of the Jetstar flight or were at the Irish Pub during the exposure time.
If you're a close contact then the ministry asks you to "self-isolate, test immediately and on day 5 after you were exposed. Further isolation and testing requirements will be provided by Public Health".
For the relevant dates, times and public health advice - and updates to existing locations of interest - click here.
9:57am - A single case of COVID-19 has forced an entire hostel into isolation for 13 days, which has left occupants of the hostel frustrated.
Fergus Jackson Cotter was meant to stay at the Choice Backpackers in Auckland for just three days before he flew to Canada. But after a person in the hostel tested positive he was forced to lockdown for nearly two weeks despite having no contact with the case.
"The day before I left, somebody, who is staying on another floor, that I’ve never seen in my life, received a positive COVID test. And so, therefore the entire building was considered close contacts and we were all locked in," he said.
To add insult to injury, Cotter also had to pay for nine extra days accommodation - something he was only able to do thanks to help from family.
Read the full story here.
9:25am - The Ministry of Health announced on Saturday evening that a flight from Rarotonga to Auckland is a 'high risk' location of interest.
The Air New Zealand flight NZ945 arrived in Auckland on Tuesday 8 February at 5.30pm.
The ministry said that anyone who was in rows 53 to 57 is considered a close contact. This means they must self-isolate and get tested immediately.
Currently, there have been no new locations of interest announced on Sunday morning.
For the relevant dates, times and public health advice - and updates to existing locations of interest - click here.
9:20am - An update on the protest outside Parliament on Sunday morning. There is a small gathering of protesters who are battling the wind and rain in Wellington.
Some protesters are gathered near the barrier with umbrellas and in rain jackets while others are holding flags and signs that say: "Free to choose" and "cancel all mandates now".
Music is played in the background with some protesters dancing but it's a pretty subdued atmosphere.
There is a small police line by the barries keep watch of the protest.
9:08am - English singer James Blunt has posted a cheeky tweet to offer his services to try remove anti-COVID vaccine mandate protesters in Wellington.
Speaker of the House Trevor Mallard blasted out vaccine messages, Barry Manilow songs and the Latin hit, Macarena, on a repeat loop on a sound system to make protesters feel uncomfortable on Saturday night.
Blunt tweeted a BBC story recapping the protest action outside Parliament and commented saying: "Give me a shout if this doesn’t work".
Read the full story here.
8:46am - Auckland City Hospital has suffered a COVID-19 outbreak with six staff members and seven patients testing positive for the virus.
A staff member from one of the hospital's older people's wards recently became symptomatic and returned a positive result. Staff and patients in the ward were tested and another 12 cases were found.
"We immediately activated our plans to prevent the spread of the virus within the hospital and worked quickly to test staff and patients on the ward," Auckland District Health Board's director of adult communities and long-term conditions Samantha Titchener said in a statement.
Read the full story here.
8:25am - Protesters outside Parliament have woken to a wet and windy day in the capital. MetSerivce is reporting that Wellington is currently the windiest and wettest place around the country with gusts up to 65kmph and 7mm of rainfall this morning.
8:20am - Kia ora, good morning, and welcome to Newshub's live coverage of the COVID-19 Omicron outbreak and the Parliament protest for Sunday, February 13.
