There are 74 new community cases of Covid-19 being reported today, and restrictions in Waikato will begin to ease from midnight tonight.

Of today's cases, 68 are in Auckland and six in Waikato with 43 of these cases being linked.

Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins and Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield are currently providing an update on the Covid-19 outbreak and response at 1pm today.

Minister Hipkins has announced that people currently in alert level 3 in the Waikato region will be allowed to meet for outdoor gatherings between two households, with a maximum of 10 people.

Face-to-face medical appointments are set to restart and early learning centres can also get back to functioning, with 10 children between bubbles.

Recreational activities have been extended to include golf, boating, hunting, fishing and scuba-diving, again with a maximum of 10 people involved.

Hipkins says it is the same stepdown setting as recently seen in Auckland.

The boundary between Auckland and Waikato will remain in place.

'Most people will not be permitted to travel,” says Hipkins.

All six of today's new Waikato cases are from Hamilton. All are known contacts of existing cases including one that was already in the quarantine facility.

Waikato DHB is continuing to encourage regionwide testing, to rule out any undetected community spread.

Testing locations in and around Waikato are available on the Healthpoint website and the Waikato DHB website. Dedicated testing sites are operating at Te Awamutu, Ôtorohanga, Whatawhata, Hamilton, and Tokoroa.

Yesterday across the Waikato region there were 1,860 swabs taken and 3,611 vaccinations given.

Auckland high schools could resume classes as soon as mid-November, Hipkins says.

Hipkins says the indicative date for years nine and 10 to return to high schools is November 15.

More work however needs to be done on the school return before that date is finalised.

Year groups may end up attending on different days to keep numbers down whilst outdoor learning, when appropriate, is also being viewed as an option.

Changes to the MIQ system in New Zealand, initially expected to be announced today, will actually be announced tomorrow instead.

On vaccines, New Zealand hit the three million mark today regarding those who are now fully vaccinated against Covid-19.

Hipkins says that of the 2759 people infected in the current Covid-19 outbreak, just seven fully vaccinated patients have been hospitalised, a statistic he calls 'staggering”.

'The best thing you can do to stay out of hospital is get vaccinated.”

Northland update

There are no new confirmed cases of COVID-19 to report in Northland, with cases in the region, associated with this outbreak, remaining at seven.

However, people living in Northland are urged to remain vigilant and get tested if they have any symptoms that could be COVID-19.

Testing and vaccination clinic locations across the region are available on the Northland DHB website

Yesterday there were 933 COVID-19 tests completed in Northland and 1,383 vaccinations – 544 first doses and 839 second doses.

Auckland update

Auckland public health officials have reviewed the suburbs of concern and are urging residents in Redvale, Rosedale, New Lynn, Wiri, Drury, Manurewa and Henderson to get tested as soon as possible if they have even very mild symptoms that might be COVID-19, even if they are fully vaccinated.

This testing will help to provide assurance that any undetected spread of COVID-19 in these communities is identified as quickly as possible.

Bayswater is no longer a specific area of concern however residents should remain vigilant and get tested if they experience even mild symptoms.

Testing is also available at GP and Urgent Care clinics, the locations of these can be found on the Healthpoint website.

In Auckland, public health officials are now supporting 562 COVID-19 cases and close contacts in the community, across 216 households, to safely isolate at home.   

Blenheim update

Public health staff are continuing to work with the person with COVID-19 who is isolating in Blenheim. Household members at this address have returned negative test results.