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PM Jacinda Ardern reveals move to gatherings of 100 under alert level 2
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has revealed the government plans to allow gatherings of up to 100 from midday on Friday, 29 May.
Watch the media briefing here:
She said it took about two weeks before the effects of changes in restrictions were seen, and New Zealand had been able to avoid a second wave of infection.
"We can now be highly confident, more than three weeks after the shift to level 3, that there are no new cases attributable to the more relaxed restrictions which we had as we stepped down into level 3 and started moving beyond that."
"On the basis of this good news, Cabinet has decided we can now increase the size of all gatherings to 100 from 12 noon this Friday."
"The shift to 100 means many more gatherings will be able to occur from now on. These changes are good news for business and those looking to plan gatherings."
Ardern said hospitality venues would still need to follow other restrictions.
She said Dr Bloomfield and the ministry of health had advised the move to gatherings of 100.
Dr Bloomfield said the initial plan was always for groups of 100, and while authorities initially decided to limit groups to 10, they now felt that smaller limit could be removed.
Ardern said Cabinet would check in on alert level 2 settings again on 8 June and no later than 22 June would consider the move to alert level 1.
Ardern has previously said rules would be reassessed every two weeks, to match up with Covid-19's cycles of infection.
She said she would be holding a meeting with the Prime Minister of Singapore on Wednesday, to mark the one-year anniversary of the "enhanced partnership" between the two countries.
There were no confirmed cases of Covid-19 reported today for the third day in a row.
See all RNZ coverage of Covid-19
Read more about the Covid-19 coronavirus:
- See all RNZ Covid-19 news
- Covid-19 symptoms: What they are and how they make you feel
- Touching your Face: Why do we do it and how to stop
- Scientific hand-washing advice to avoid infection
- Your Covid-19 questions answered - from health and employment to managing anxiety
- A timeline: How the coronavirus started, spread and stalled life in New Zealand
- Coronavirus: A glossary of terms
- The Coronavirus Podcast
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