Prime minister Jacinda Ardern and director-general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield provided a Covid-19 update at a press conference just after 4.30pm today (Wednesday February 17).

The alert levels will change from midnight tonight: Aucklanders will move to alert level two at and the rest of New Zealand will go down to level one, the PM said.

There will be some exceptions to the Auckland alert level change for people associated with the Papatoetoe High School community. 

Ashley said another community case of Covid-19 had been identified which, in addition to the two reported this morning, brings the number of community cases today up to three. 

This new case is a household member of the Auckland community cases identified on Sunday (February 14), which led to the change in alert levels. 

Ashley said New Zealanders should remain “encouraged” that all cases so far have clear epidemiological links.

All close contacts of existing cases - apart from the one just identified - have returned negative tests, he said.

Cabinet will review the alert level settings again next week, the PM said.

PHOTO: Supplied