Holidaymakers in New Zealand are being asked to pack a “Covid kit” and stay put at their campgrounds if Covid-19 emerges during the summer break.
The Government has assembled a Covid-19 resurgence plan aimed at giving the country an unrestricted holiday, as Britons arrange “Christmas bubbles”, the Netherlands and Germany enter lockdowns, and the pandemic death toll in the United States eclipses 300,000 people.
The resurgence plan largely resembles the existing response, with loosely mapped out summer scenarios providing some guide to travellers about how to respond to Covid-19 cases.
Holidaymakers may be asked to return home if an alert level change occurs, and events may be cancelled.
But if an outbreak occurs at a campground or other destination, holidaymakers may be asked to stay put, within their bubble, as public health officials descend to test and trace.
“In a worst-case scenario, if it became clear there was a high risk of widespread transmission, you’d need to stay where you are and in your bubble until you get official advice. We don’t want people rushing home and possibly taking the virus with them,” Minister for Covid-19 Response Chris Hipkins said.
A positive Covid-19 case would first be treated as any other – an update would be given by the director-general of health or by Hipkins, and contact tracing and testing would get under way.
If the spread was confined to a border worker and their contacts, as has occurred in recent outbreaks, then the country would remain in Covid-19 alert level 1.
If a person at a campground tested positive, local testing and tracing would escalate and targeted restrictions may be put in place.
A nationwide alert level change, which would increase restrictions across the country, may occur if an outbreak that can’t be connected to a border facility is discovered at a music festival and attendees quickly travel home afterward.
The plan also asks travellers to pack a “Covid kit”, including soap, sanitiser and masks, in case an outbreak occurs. Washing hands, scanning QR codes with the NZ Covid Tracer app at cafes and restaurants, and activating the Bluetooth function on that app are encouraged in the marketing material for the plan.
“If we’re going away on a break, we should be thinking about what would happen if we’re required to stay at our holiday location while waiting for official advice. That might mean a backup plan for homes or pets if we can’t get home straight away,” Hipkins said.
Finance Minister Grant Robertson also announced the creation of a “Resurgence Support Payment” scheme in the event of a move to Covid-19 alert level 2 for a week or more. This would help hospitality and events businesses to pay fixed costs.
The one-off payment for businesses that have a 30 per cent drop in revenue over two weeks would be $1500, with an additional $400 payment per employee, for up to 50 full-time employees.
A large business could receive $21,000 if it was affected by a move to Covid-19 alert level 2.
The wage subsidy scheme previously deployed by the Government would also be available if the country moved to Covid-19 alert levels 3 or 4.
New Zealand has no cases of Covid-19 within the community currently, and 56 cases within quarantine facilities at the border.
