Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Director General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield have announced Auckland will drop to Alert Level 2 as of midnight tonight, while the remainder of the country will move to level 1. 

Jacinda says this is good news, apart from the cases which have emerged today, all other close contacts have come back negative. 

She says the students, staff and families of the Papatoetoe school are to stay home and isolate. 

The reason to move to level 2 for Auckland is because there is still a level of caution to it. 

She says the key aspects of hospitality to take precautions, as well as limiting mass gatherings are needed to avoid any potential for spreading the virus which has not been found. 

The Director General says the school, where two students who have been confirmed as positive for COVID-19 earlier today, will remain closed. 

Ashley confirmed one additional person from the household of the original community outbreak has also returned a positive COVID-19 test. 

He reaffirmed that any classmates to the confirmed cases need to remain in isolation. 

All students at the school are asked to be tested urgently. 

The move is good news for local events in Central Otago, such as the Highlanders pre-season game on Friday night, and the Mt Benger A&P Show in the Teviot Valley this weekend. 

As ever, both the Prime Minister and Director General of Health asked people to stay home and get tested if they are sick, regardless of where they are in New Zealand. 

The alert levels will be reviewed again on Monday.