There were calls to avoid complacency today as just 28 new cases of Covid-19 in the community were announced by health officials.
Photo: RNZ
There were 49 cases reported yesterday. A single case in Wellington today was a close contact of an existing person and already in MIQ.
There are now 731 active Covid-19 cases.
Director of Public Health Dr Caroline McElnay said the nation needed to remain cautious as the Delta variant's long tail but flick out and cause issues.
There are now 43 people in hospital, all in the Auckland region - nine in ICU and three on ventilators.
After a call for specialist health workers to assist with the Delta outbreak in Auckland, 130 healthcare staff from across Aotearoa had put their hands up.
More than 70 percent of New Zealanders 12 years of age or over had booked in for a vaccination or had been administered one dose.
More vaccines
Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson told media today the government was still in negotiations for more vaccines.
He said New Zealand was continuing to get deliveries of vaccine from Pfizer but to meet demand more supply was needed.
Low risk from escapee
The Ministry of Health updated its locations of interest today, which included several more supermarkets in Auckland.
However, Robertson confirmed today there were no public locations of interest associated with the man who escaped managed isolation facility in Ellerslie in the early hours of yesterday morning.
CCTV showed him leaving his room before departing the facility at 1.07am.
He walked home but there was no contact with others. Police and Defence Force staff checked his room then went to his house and took him into custody at 2.05pm.
Robertson said health officials believed there was low risk to public safety during the incident.
Earlier, Auckland mayor Phil Goff on Morning Report called the escapee's actions selfish and irresponsible.
He remained in a room guarded by security at the Jet Park quarantine hotel today.
Wage subsidy overload
Businesses had trouble applying for the second round of the wage subsidy, with the Work and Income website overloaded this morning.
The website had incorrectly told applicants last night the cut-off time for the first round had closed, when in fact, it should have been open until midnight.
The Ministry of Social Development extended the time to apply until 7am today.
Applications for the second round opened at 9am this morning, but complaints on the ministry's Facebook page show the website was not working.
The ministry said the problem was high traffic on the page, and people should try again later.
Finance Minister Grant Robertson Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
Robertson today said about 242,000 applications totalling payments of $989 million had been received since applications opened on 20 August.
He also announced ministers had agreed to reduce the time of operation for a business to be eligible to apply for the payment from six months to one month.
Maori vaccination efforts
Māori are calling on the government to trust them to lead vaccination efforts in their communities.
Dozens of locals had turned up to a Covid-19 vaccination clinic at Mõkau at the boundary of Taranaki and the Waitomo District this week set up by Māori health provider Tui Ora.
Te Rōpū Whakakaupapa Urutā co-leader Rawiri Jansen said low vaccination figures for Maori were entirely predictable as the vaccination rollout was never set up with Māori in mind.
But Māori and Pasifika will no longer have to book for a vaccination at any Whānau Ora centres.
The new policy was announced by commissioning agency chief executive John Tamihere today.
He said it removed one barrier for whānau who did not know how to navigate an online booking system.
The most recent data shows almost one in seven people got a Pfizer shot over the past week, but for Māori that figure was closer to one in 11.
Northland moves into alert level level 3
Many Northland businesses re-opened for their customers today as the region marked its first day in alert level 3.
The director of CC's Cafe Cinema in Kerikeri, Thérèse Wickbom, was among those now offering contactless food and drink pick-ups.
But she said her thoughts are with businesses that have chosen not to open because they found it too hard last time they were in level 3.
Wickbom said her business relied on community support, as the community relies on it.
Photo: RNZ / Samantha Olley
Meanwhile, Northland iwi leader, Hone Harawira, said his community was planning to set up about half a dozen control areas around Te Tai Tokerau.
He told Morning Report they were working with police to create information points for the community to help keep people safe.
But he said if they came across somebody who shouldn't be there, they would be asking them to turn around and go back home.
Police are now operating five checkpoints at the boundary between the two regions.
But Harawira said hundreds fled from Auckland to holiday homes when the nation first went into level 4 lockdown.