Prominent microbiologist Siouxsie Wiles is "very nervous" about the Government's plan to ease COVID-19 restrictions, warning there's no guarantee new variants will appear milder like Omicron.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Wednesday announced all of New Zealand would move to a new version of the red traffic light setting at 11:59pm on Friday.
Ardern said the changes to the red setting mean crowd gathering limits will be scrapped for outdoor events, indoor gathering limits lifted from 100 to 200 and QR code scanning ditched. From April 4, the COVID vaccine passes, most mandates will also be dropped.
Dr Wiles, from the University of Auckland, said upgrading vaccine passes to include booster jabs - instead of scrapping them - would have made at-risk people safer in indoor environments.
"Similarly, removing vaccine mandates for people working with our children who can't yet be vaccinated makes me very nervous," she said in a statement.
Dr Wiles said in the case of QR code scanning, she would have kept that too.
"It would have been much easier just to keep up the habit than rely on people picking it up again in the future.
"With COVID here to stay globally and the next wave potentially just weeks or months away, I would have liked to have seen talk of the changes we need to be making to our indoor environments to make them safer for everyone against what is a deadly airborne virus."
Ardern on Wednesday said the traffic light system changes were made on the "best available evidence".
The Prime Minister did not rule out vaccine passes and QR code scanning returning in the future.
But "for now", Ardern said vaccine passes would no longer be needed.
"I say 'for now' as I will still provide the same disclaimer that every country realistically must: that, should there be a variant that demands it or a change in circumstances, we may need them again."
People should also remain prepared to use QR code scanning again and not delete the COVID Tracer app from their phones, Ardern said.
She said people should also get their booster shots and continue wearing masks - especially to protect vulnerable people.
Ardern said New Zealand needed to keep using tools to keep vulnerable people safe.
"In times where we see cases grow and pressure then results on our health system, we'll need to act to slow that spread down as much as possible," she told reporters.
"That means keeping the COVID-19 Protection Framework - or the traffic light system - to help us manage in the future, including… new variants."
