Picture used for illustrative purpose. File

Gulf Today Report 

Auckland, New Zealand in second lockdown this month due to cluster of contagious COVID-19 UK variant.

The nearly 2 million population have been placed on a seven-day lockdown due to a case of a person that had been infectious for a week but not in isolation.

Prime Minister Jacinda Arden said, "It is more than likely there will be additional cases in the community."

The new restrictions follow a three-day stay-at-home order in mid-February when the UK variant of the virus was identified in New Zealand. 

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Opposition leader Judith Collins urged tougher penalties for those who do not follow advice on isolation. "No one wants to be yo-yoing in and out lockdown," Collins said in a statement.

The new lockdown, part of Level 3 curbs, lets people leave home only for essential shopping and work, while public venues will stay shut. Curbs elsewhere in New Zealand are to be tightened to Level 2, setting limits on public gatherings.

Since the outbreak, New Zealand has recorded 2,000 infections and 26 deaths.