Covid 19 coronavirus: government backsliding on funeral rules – up to 50 people allowed

The government has regressed on the rules below alert level 2, allowing only 10 people at funerals and tangi.

Health Minister David Clark announced this afternoon that up to 50 people can say goodbye to loved ones as long as the Health Ministry is satisfied that a series of public health measures can be consistently met.

The government has been under increasing pressure since announcing on Monday that restaurants and sporting events could hold up to 100 people, but funerals and places of worship would remain restricted to 10 as at level 2, which starts at 11.59 p.m. from this night.

Clark, at a press conference with Director General of Health Ashley Bloomfield this afternoon, said funeral directors will be required to complete a form to register funerals with the Ministry of Health and declare that the health requirements have been met.

They include physical distancing, hand hygiene, and no congregations of food and drink afterward.

Ministers have met with church leaders, funeral directors, and iwi leaders in the past 24 hours.

“Funerals are exceptional events and have been one of the most difficult areas of restriction we have considered in trying to avoid the double tragedy of losing a loved one and spreading the virus,” said Clark.

“The strength of our response to this virus has been in our agility to respond and we have listened to the concerns of the 10-person limit for funerals and moved forward on that, while emphasizing that they still pose a significant risk of delay.”

“Throughout the world, we have seen the virus spread in funerals, as well as a second wave of infection, just as countries were taking over the virus, as we are doing now.”

He said that a funeral for 100 people in the US USA It caused an outbreak that caused 30 deaths in one county, three funerals in South Africa resulted in 200 cases, and 143 cases in Canada have been linked to a funeral home.

“We can all be proud of the progress we have made in fighting the virus in the past seven weeks and we need to maintain this unity to keep us on the right track.”

“Our virus groups represent a slice of kiwi life, events in which people mix and mingle, and any spread in these events could make the difference between moving forward with confidence and backing down.”

“I am pleased that we have found a workable solution that keeps people safe and, at the same time, allows more people to gather and grieve.”

In a marae environment, public health units would be supported, but the government would first rely on whanau and marae to keep tangi safe.

The complete guide will be available later today.

Clark agreed that this was an area where the government was wrong.

He said as parliamentarians that they had received considerable comments on this issue. The sector has told them that they can manage the risks and they have agreed to take responsibility for those risks.

He said the conversations had been going on for some time after being asked why the consultation only happened on the last day of alert level 3.

Bloomfield said he had not specifically discussed with iwi about having a multi-day tangi, but that they should be able to move on as long as they adhere to health protocols.

Within two weeks, the Cabinet would review the guidance on group size, but these were very specific situations, Bloomfield said.

Bloomfield said Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern had pointed out that Level 2 could be phased in and that this was part of this process after the consultation.

Professional sport was a workplace that would have to have strict regulations, while tangi was a private event, Bloomfield said.

” Inconsistent policy ‘

National Party leader Simon Bridges said he was pleased to see some progress in the decision to increase the number at funerals.

However, he said he “smelled of an inconsistent political process” and said it was inconsistent with the 100 limit for other places like movies.

He said it was also not satisfactory for paperwork to be done.

Bridges also said that it was unfair that churches and other places of faith could not have larger congregations. He said church leaders had spoken directly to the prime minister but to no avail.

Bridges said he believed the funerals abroad had been large and that the illness had spread. However, he believed in New Zealand, funeral directors and marae elders were aware of the risk and were more than capable of dealing with it.

He said it was surprising that strip clubs and pubs could open to more than 10 people, but that churches couldn’t, despite being a more controlled environment.

“No one is arguing for many hundreds, but I think 100 is a reasonable compromise.”

He said the figure of 50 was inconsistent with any other limits that applied.

Going to level 1

To move to Alert Level 1, Clark said they would analyze a variety of factors, including low community transmission. If things continue to be encouraging, the Cabinet may decide to move alert levels. It could be a phased approach.

Bloomfield said they were more concerned with cases that arose without being traceable.

Bloomfield and Clark said the first-rate freedoms they would enjoy would be to see their family and friends.

Burning under pressure

At his 1 p.m. press conference, Ardern announced that the Health Ministry was reviewing planned funeral rules today, with the help of funeral directors and church leaders.

Ardern said that “the most difficult parts” of the alert level framework were funerals and tangi.

But she had instigated calls among church leaders, funeral directors, and iwi leaders to see if they could find a way to address legitimate health concerns while acknowledging that funerals and tangi could not be postponed.

They were “on the way” to find a solution and the Health Minister would have more information this afternoon, before the country changes its alert level.

The government was still working on the details. Ardern said they had always been agile and recognized the difficult times kiwis were going through. She said “there will still be restrictions.”

They were looking to see if there would be “checks and balances,” involving funeral directors and the Ministry of Health.

Other areas in his response had also changed after the consultation “and I don’t shy away from that.”

She accepted that there had been consequences of the restrictions: she has had friends who had funerals and tangi during the blockade and alert level 3.

“But ultimately, we have always said that we would like to solve the problems that arose.”

But New Zealand would have to exercise caution because “we are not yet out of the woods yet.”

Bloomfield said consistency around public health councils was based on group size and purpose of the meeting, especially where they would mix and mingle.

The public health council focused on balancing health risks, but was committed and listened to specific concerns about funerals and tangi.

Ardern said no one wanted to see the police dissolve funerals, but law enforcement was up to the police.

“I don’t think anyone in New Zealand wants to see a scene like that.”

Ardern said social gatherings had the highest risk factors and that countries were now having a second wave, what she called “a warning shot for us.”

Ardern has been under fire from grieving families and the National Party in recent days.

National leader Simon Bridges described the funeral rules as “inhumane,” questioning how the 10-person limit can be reconciled with a 100-person limit for theaters.