SYDNEY, Jan 23 (Reuters) – New Zealand Prime Minister Jacintha Orton has canceled her wedding as the country imposed new restrictions to curb the social spread of the Covit-19 Omigran variant, she told reporters on Sunday.
After nine COVID-19 Omicron cases showed the community spreading from the North to the South Islands after a wedding, New Zealand will impose mask rules and control the crowd from midnight on Sunday.
A family flew back to Nelson on the South Island after attending a wedding and other events in Auckland on the North Island. Positive test for family and one flight attendant.
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New Zealand, under its Govt-19 defense structure, will switch to a more masked red system. Events such as indoor hospitality events such as bars and restaurants and weddings are limited to 100 people. Orton said the limit would be reduced to 25 people if the vaccine pass is not used.
“My marriage is not going to happen,” he told reporters. Artern did not release his wedding date, but rumors were circulating that it was imminent.
When asked by reporters how she felt about the annulment of her marriage to Clark Coford, a longtime partner and host of the fishing show, Artern responded: “That’s life.”
He added, “I’m no different to the thousands of other New Zealanders who have suffered the most devastating effects of the epidemic, sometimes the inability to be with a loved one.
New Zealand’s borders have been closed to foreigners since March 2020. The government has postponed plans to gradually reopen from mid-January to the end of February due to concerns about a possible Omigron eruption in neighboring Australia.
Those who can travel to New Zealand under the narrow exceptions must apply to stay in government-run isolated facilities. The government last week stopped offering new seats amid an increase in the number of people coming with Omicron.
About 94% of New Zealand’s population over the age of 12 have been fully vaccinated and 56% of those eligible have received booster shots.
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Kirsty Needham Report; Cynthia Asterman Editing
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