Another hotel in Christchurch has been converted into a managed isolation facility, adding nearly 100 more rooms to the Government's MIQ supply.
The Quality Hotel Elms in Papanui is in its final stages of being signed off by Cabinet, taking the number of MIQ facilities up to 32.
Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said Cabinet had asked the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment to boost managed isolation capacity in light of the added protections enforced due to the Delta variant.
"These include cohorting, taking hotels offline to boost their ventilation systems and the conversion of two isolation facilities for quarantine," Hipkins said.
"We want to assure Kiwis overseas that we are doing everything we can to facilitate their safe return."
It comes after the roll out of the Government's new lottery system for MIQ say 30,000 New Zealanders anxiously wait for a chance in securing one of the 3000 spots opened up for the end of the year.
It’s supposed to be an improvement.
By adding the Quality Hotel Elms, it opens up an additional 85 rooms for managed isolation which could become available from as early as mid-November onwards.
Other options were considered in Auckland and Rotorua but were dismissed due to workforce constraints, while no suitable options were found in Hamilton or Wellington.
In order for hotels to be converted into an MIQ facility, they have to meet a "rigorous safety, public health and staffing criteria".
"This includes appropriate ventilation, staff 'green zones', separate entry and exit points and CCTV capability," said Hipkins.
He added that the Government is reviewing other options for how it sustains the managed isolation model in the long term including a pilot program for Kiwis heading overseas to secure spots in MIQ to use when they return.
"The Government is working on medium to long term options for a sustainable and stable MIQ model. How we manage returnees will also evolve, depending on vaccination rates here and overseas.
"We're progressing a pilot for a small number of fully vaccinated New Zealanders to be able to travel overseas and isolate in approved accommodation when they return and will learn a lot from that."
Hipkins says further announcements about the pilot programme are expected in the coming weeks.
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