Kia ora John,

At 11.59 pm tonight, New Zealand will move to the highest COVID-19 Alert Level of 4, and as a nation, we’ll go into self-isolation.

The reason we’re doing this is simple: It will save lives.

It’s likely that COVID-19 has already started to pass from person to person in our community - we need to break that chain.

Slowing the spread of this virus and protecting New Zealand from the worst requires every single one of us to play our part.

So, from one New Zealander to another, I’m asking you to stay at home, break the chain of transmission, and do your bit to protect others.

I know that getting on top of the spread means some big changes to the way we’re used to living. It’ll mean no visits with friends or family, and it’ll mean swapping out your regular activities, like visiting the park with your children, to activities at home or walks around the block, but that will protect others and it’ll protect you.

If you need to head out for essentials like groceries or medication, that’s okay, but please limit this to when it’s necessary.

And, if you do go out, keep as much physical distance between you and others as you can. At least two metres is the recommendation from experts and lowers the chance of the virus passing on. It’s also important that you avoid touching surfaces that other people may have touched. The virus can live on surfaces and pass on to you with contact.

Keep washing your hands and if you cough or sneeze, do it into your elbow. These may seem like small things, but the medical evidence shows that they make a big difference when it comes to stopping the transmission of COVID-19.

It’s also important to be realistic about what we face. Cases will continue to rise steeply before they get better. That does not mean that what we’re doing isn’t working.

The benefits of what we do today will not be fully felt for many days to come because of the time it takes for people to show symptoms. But, that’s exactly why we’re taking these measures now, in an effort to get ahead of the virus, and slow it down.

I know we’ve moved with huge speed and many of the actions you are being asked to take will not be easy, but they do give us the best chance as a nation to stop the spread of this virus.

I want to take a moment to share a few final messages.

I want to let you know you’re not alone. You will hear from us, and see us, daily as we guide New Zealand through this period. It won’t always be perfect. But the principles guiding us are the right ones.

I want to thank those people who will keep working over the next four weeks to ensure we all have access to the essentials we need: the groceries, fuel, power and medicines. We know this will be a stressful time for you and your family, and all of New Zealand is grateful for the work you do.

For those of you who are not working in what’s been defined as an “essential” role, that doesn’t mean you don’t have a job to do in this. Your job is to play your part in saving lives by staying home, and breaking the chain.

What we are about to do as a country has not happened in New Zealand before, these are unprecedented events here and worldwide. This is going to be an uncertain time for all of us in some ways, but we can and we will get through this together.

So please remember:

Be kind
Stay home
Break the chain
Save lives

Thank you for everything you are about to do.

Jacinda