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National News & Alerts

December 9, 2021

Testing requirements for asymptomatic unvaccinated travellers

To meet domestic travel requirements from mid-December, 15-minute COVID-19 rapid antigen testing will be available at no cost from community pharmacies throughout New Zealand until the end of January 2022.

When the Auckland boundary lifts at 11:59pm on Tuesday 14 December, anyone travelling from Auckland who is not fully vaccinated will need to carry with them evidence of a negative test result within 72 hours of travel. In addition, those who are travelling in other parts of the country with a transport company that requires unvaccinated individuals to be tested will also be required to carry evidence of a negative test result.

Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield says: ‘Aucklanders have borne the brunt of the Delta outbreak, facing restrictions for an extended period to keep the rest of New Zealand safe. But the time has come to allow all New Zealanders to reconnect with one another over summer as safely as possible.’

Testing for asymptomatic unvaccinated individuals over 12 years wishing to depart from Auckland, and asymptomatic unvaccinated domestic travellers from elsewhere in New Zealand, can be a supervised rapid antigen test at selected community pharmacies.

Sport NZ

Kia ora koutou,

I hope everyone is taking care as we count down to the end of the year. Just a few short weeks to go before we can enjoy a well-earned break.

It continues to be a challenging time as we come to terms with the new COVID-19 Protection Framework, however on balance this feels like a positive new era for sport and recreation within the traffic light system. In Auckland in particular it was great to see people out and about this weekend, and even better to see teams playing together and indoor classes getting back to it.

As you know, it has been priority for us to communicate confirmed guidance for the sector as soon as we can, and to help ease pressure across our partner network where possible. Please continue to send your questions to: Covid19response@sportnz.org.nz so that we can support operational planning where needed. In many ways we are working through this together; every question answered and shared helps another club or organisation in the same position. Our full guidance and FAQs can be found on the Sport NZ website and information is below regarding our drop-in sessions.

Lastly, we appreciate hugely your efforts to keep New Zealanders active and moving at this time. As they say, where there is a will there is a way, and organisations have found some very inventive ways to support and encourage physical activity despite seemingly impossible limitations. Sport NZ is committed in this phase to supporting participation-based initiatives. An example of this is the extension of the Healthy Active Learning initiative into more schools and kura across the country. The He Oranga Poutama Programme Investment, which contributes to positive outcomes for Maori wellbeing, has also been extended for suitable providers to deliver in 2022. You can find out more about these initiatives below.

I hope you all get a chance for some pre-Christmas cheer with your friends and loved ones.

He waka eke noa,
Raelene  Castle

December 6, 2021

Traffic updates and delays

Check here for Traffic updates and Delays in the Wellington region.

December 6, 2021

Flooding updates – Kapiti Coast

Due to heavy rain starting on 6 December we are experiencing flooding in the district, causing streams and rivers to rise dramatically. We’ve had several pockets of localised flooding and a few landslides. Weather conditions eased overnight but staff are keeping a watching brief because the forecast is for more rain on Tuesday.

This page will keep you updated on what’s happening, from road closures and what to do if you need to report flooding, or need help.

General advice

People are asked to stay safe and dry at home and not to venture out to look at the flooding. It’s dangerous and we need to keep the roads clear for emergency vehicles.

Stay away from waterways; the heavy rain undermines riverbanks, and they can collapse without warning.

Our pipe networks are having to cope with a massive amount of water, so remember to treat all floodwaters as potentially contaminated.

If you have any fear for your personal safety please dial 111. If you have less urgent flooding issues or operational requests, please call us on 0800 486 486 or log it on Antenno.
Read More >

November 25, 2021

Plea to drivers – don’t ignore traffic management

Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency will close on-and-off-ramps overnight while critical work is done on State Highway 1 (SH1) to avoid a repeat of incidents where drivers have attempted to drive the wrong way up a motorway off-ramp.

On and off-ramp night-time closures have been in place between Johnsonville and Tawa as workers install fibre for new electronic signage and CCTV cameras.

During work at the Tawa interchange, which included the closure of the southbound on-ramp, several drivers travelling north from Tawa towards Takapu Road ignored numerous detour and road closure signs. They then attempted to drive the wrong way up the southbound Tawa off-ramp to access the southbound motorway lanes and continue their journey south.

“Driving the wrong way on any road is a disaster waiting to happen – these incidents put those drivers, our workers and the public at risk,” says Mark Owen, Regional Maintenance and Operations Manager.

Mr Owen says the drivers were only stopped by traffic management workers, who physically prevented them from continuing the wrong way up the off-ramp and onto SH1.

“There was clear traffic management in place all the way through the Tawa interchange, and it was only thanks to the quick thinking of our contractors that a potential disaster was averted.

“Our top priority is keeping everyone safe on the roads, so while this work continues, we have no option but to close both on and off-ramps during the night to prevent people driving in the wrong direction. We acknowledge this will be further inconvenience for the public, but it is the only way to prevent this happening again.”

The southbound on and off-ramps at Tawa will be closed for two weeks from Sunday 28 November between 9pm and 5.30am on Sunday to Thursday nights.

Drivers who would normally use these on and off-ramps are asked to plan ahead and use the local road network via SH1 Mungavin Avenue/Titahi Bay or Churton Park/Glenside interchanges.

The closures are to allow Waka Kotahi to install new technology and signage on SH1 that will help people navigate the road safely and more easily, safety and keep them informed of any incidents or crashes ahead.

It is part of an ongoing programme of improvements to the regional state highway network, which will continue up to and beyond the opening of the Transmission Gully motorway.

For more information follow the Waka Kotahi Wellington Facebook page or visit the Wellington Network Operational Readiness webpage: nzta.govt.nz/wnor

Plan ahead for a safe, enjoyable journey. Keep up to date with:

COVID-19 services update: nzta.govt.nz/COVID19
Traffic updates: journeys.nzta.govt.nz/traffic/wellington(external link)
Facebook: facebook.com/NZTAWgtn(external link)
Twitter: twitter.com/WakaKotahiWgtn(external link)(external link)
Journey planner: journeys.nzta.govt.nz/wellington(external link)
Phone: 0800 4 HIGHWAYS (0800 44 44 49)

Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency works to create transport solutions for all New Zealanders – from helping new drivers earn their licences, to leading safety campaigns to investing in public transport, state highways and local roads.

November 25, 2021

Know the water safety code to stay safe in the water this summer

November is Water Safety Awareness month and, with summer approaching, Water Safety New Zealand (WSNZ) is cautioning New Zealanders that more fatalities occur in spring and summer than at any other time during the year[1].

Warmer weather will see more New Zealanders heading to our beaches, lakes and rivers. Research[2] conducted in 2021 found that 3.2 million (85 percent) Kiwis visited the coast in the past 12 months, almost half of them (48 percent) doing so monthly, and a quarter of Kiwis also visiting rivers made up predominantly of young people under 25 years.

People aren’t just taking in the scenery either; over 2 million people are active while visiting the coast, including swimming or playing in the water.

WSNZ’s Chief Executive, Daniel Gerrard, says: “We want everyone to enjoy their time whether it’s at the beach, lake or river but remind people to take personal responsibility for theirs and their family’s safety in or around water.

“Be prepared, know the risks and your limits, and watch out for yourself and others.”

WSNZ says swimming at the beach or river is quite different to swimming in a pool and poses additional risk. While a third of people swimming in the ocean, and a quarter swimming at rivers, say it is not at all or not very hazardous, the drowning statistics prove otherwise. Swimming has the highest number of preventable drownings[3] compared to other water-related activities, with 95 deaths recorded over the past five years (2016-2020: 390 incidents).

WSNZ is urging people to know the water safety code for safe play in the water.
Read More >

November 25, 2021

Alert Levels and updates

Learn about the COVID-19 Protection Framework

November 25, 2021

New child safeguarding bite-sized learning modules

We have created a suite of new bite-sized modules as an introduction to key topics relating to child safeguarding and how to support a great environment for tamariki and rangatahi.

Part of the Integrity Guidance Portal, the modules are free to use and each should take between two and five minutes to complete.

There are eight modules designed for anyone organising, coaching or supporting children in sport or recreation, such as coaches, club members, parents and whanau of participants. The modules explore topics such as understanding the motivations of children, how to build safe and trusted relationships with young people, appropriate approaches for different ages and stages of development and supporting diversity when working with children.

These modules will help build a base-level understanding of child safeguarding and act as a gateway into some of our more indepth e-learning modules that are available on our free e-Learning platform, Sport Tutor, where you can record your learning and move at your own pace.

The eight quick learn modules cover:

Building safe and trusted relationships with children
Motivations of children
Contributing to positive environments
Needs of difference ages and stages of children
Interactions based on level of development
Appropriate actions when interacting with children
Embracing diversity
Responding to varied behaviours of children

Start your learning journey here

November 17, 2021

Government to open Auckland border on December 15, allowing travel for Christmas

The Auckland border will be lifted on December 15 to allow for Christmas travel, by which time the entire country will have moved into the less restrictive “traffic light” system – whether or not the Government’s 90 per cent vaccination target is reached.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced the planned opening of Auckland on Wednesday, ending weeks of speculation about how the Government would manage the busy Christmas period after it promised that months of lockdown restrictions would end for summer.

From December 15, fully vaccinated people will be able to travel across the Auckland border freely. People who are unvaccinated will only be able to leave Auckland if they receive a negative Covid-19 test 72 hours prior to departure, but there will be no similar restriction on unvaccinated people entering Auckland. Police will conduct “random spot checks” to enforce this rule.

“This may be our toughest period to date … While I know there will be some who will think our moves [are] too fast, others too slow, I have no doubt that it is the best plan to keep us as safe and free as possible, to transition us safely to a new way of managing Covid,” Ardern said.

The decision to move the entire country into the traffic light system “soon after” November 29 means the Government has effectively abandoned its target of reaching 90 per cent vaccination across each district health board before making the shift.

“Traffic light system is better designed for our new strategy to minimise and protect against Covid-19, and is more fit for purpose than the alert levels.

“It also offers greater incentives to be vaccinated and greater protections for both those who are and aren’t. That’s why it’s time to get ready to move,” Ardern said.

Ardern said Auckland would move into the “red” setting of the system, as would parts of the country with lower vaccination rates.

“This will add protections and hopefully also support an increase in vaccinations.”

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Furry Friday: Canine brighteners making life better

Enjoy

I needed to relax and decompress this week. So I headed off to a friend’s bach with a stack of library books and a cooler bag full of frozen home-cooked meals. But the best thing I took with me was my dog.

Riley was the ideal companion. He got me up each morning before I’d had a chance to oversleep, and out for a two-hour walk every every day. Then he snuggled with me for the rest of the day as I read.

Dogs balance us out. Their delight in life neutralises our worries, their curiosity and openness can cancel our tendency to get too serious. So today’s pet photo collection – not for the first time – is a tribute to dogs taking joy in life and thereby improving ours. Scroll and enjoy!

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