Auckland Mayor Phil Goff is disappointed that restrictions have been extended, but has urged the city to comply with government guidelines.
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This afternoon Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced that Auckland would stay in alert level 3 until 11.59pm Sunday 30 August. The rest of New Zealand will remain in alert level 2.
Ardern also announced Cabinet's decision to make masks mandatory on public transport. That will apply at level 2 and above, and will come into effect from Monday 31 August.
Goff says it is disappointing for everyone that the level 3 restrictions will continue. He had hoped it would be possible to return to level 2 from Wednesday night.
He concedes the extension of the lockdown is "necessary".
"We'll do what we can to stand on our own two feet. I don't like going to government to say 'we need assistance with this'."
He says he is grateful for government support of some big projects, including the rail line to Pukekohe.
He encourages people to shop locally, be patient, tolerant and kind.
"But most of all, please act responsibly. Our ability to contain this virus depends on all of us working together, taking the steps that are necessary. We are almost there Auckland, we are hopefully now in the home straight, we need to stay the course and we'll get there."
He says the strongest medical advice is that the gains already made would be at risk if we move "prematurely" to level 2.
He has a message for people breaking the level 3 restrictions, such as children who were seen playing at a skate park in recent days.
"When we break the rules, we don't put just ourselves at risk, we put other, more vulnerable people at risk. And that's something we all have to remember. We are in this together, we can do it as a community, and we've shown that before. We've beat it before, and we can do that again."
He pointed at Melbourne, Victoria, for not going hard soon enough. "We learn the lesson from that."
"I know this means more sacrifice by Aucklanders, but if we want to beat the virus, if we want to stamp out transmission, then it makes sense to follow the expert opinion and to do what they advise."
He thanked the vast majority of Aucklanders for following the rules.
Goff reminded Aucklanders in places where distancing was not easy, wearing a mask was recommended.
He says the council continues to support some organisations, including Auckland City Mission.
He believes the risk of ongoing lockdowns will reduce as the government improves its operation on the border. But this Auckland cluster was wide-spread and required restrictive measures, he said.
Photo: RNZ / Dan Cook
He says New Zealand is perfecting its systems, and hopefully that will get us to a point when a vaccine becomes available.
The impact of this lockdown on council has been less severe than last time, he says.
"It will have some impact, but I'm told the severity of that impact at the moment, working with the council and our CCOs is much less than previously and we hope we can get through it."
Council had been able to keep its investment in infrastructure at $2.6 billion - $1 billion more than the average over the last five years.
"That's the part that we can play in stimulating the economy and creating jobs."
In an earlier release, Goff said he believed Aucklanders would understand why the decision to extend had been made.
"This will be difficult for people whose jobs and businesses are most affected by Level 3 restrictions. However, the advice given by medical experts is clear; if we ease up on restrictions too early, we risk a further resurgence and losing the benefits we gained from ensuring the virus is contained," he said.
"I want to thank Aucklanders for their patience and sacrifice to date, I know it hasn't been easy, but we need to continue doing what we know works."
Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield today announced nine new cases of Covid-19, including eight connected to the Auckland cluster. Today's numbers take the Auckland Americold cluster to 101 cases - the country's biggest so far.
The Auckland region was moved to alert level 3 and the rest of the country to level 2 on Wednesday 12 August, after four people in the community from one Auckland family tested positive for the virus.
Read more about the Covid-19 coronavirus:
- See all RNZ Covid-19 news
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- Coronavirus: A glossary of terms
