New Zealand has confirmed two new imported cases of coronavirus from the UK a week after lifting all restrictions.

Two women, one in their 30s and the other in their 40s, flew into the country from London, ending a 24-day streak of no new infections and sparking a round of testing in the country.

Both were from the same family and had been given special permission to enter New Zealand to visit a dying parent before they were tested.

The two stayed in an isolation hotel in Auckland after arriving on June 7, Dr Ashley Bloomfield, director-general of health, said on Tuesday,

On June 12, they applied for an exemption to visit their parent, who passed away later that night.

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They were given permission to travel to Wellington by car on June 13 and did not use any public facilities or have any contact with people along the way.

The pair stayed in Wellington with a single family member, who has now been placed in self-isolation.

They were tested on Monday and the results were confirmed on Tuesday.

The women had ‘done everything right’ and had not put other members of the public at risk, Dr Bloomfield said.

However, he added that he had now asked for ‘anyone being released for compassionate exemption [to be] tested and [have] a negative result’ before they are released.

Health officials are currently tracking down anybody who may have been close to the two women – including passengers and staff on their flights and people at the Auckland hotel.

The two women are currently in isolation in Wellington and the funeral of their parent has been delayed until they recover.

All people living in New Zealand were given the go-ahead to live life as normal again on June 8.

All forms of public events are now allowed to take place without any limitations or social distancing guidelines, a decision that was made after there were no new reported cases for 17 days and no active cases.

People arriving in the country will still have to spend 14 days in quarantine under government orders, Ms Ardern has confirmed.

The prime minister said last week: ‘We are confident we have eliminated transmission of the virus in New Zealand for now, but elimination is not a point in time, it is a sustained effort.

‘We almost certainly will see cases here again … and that is not a sign that we have failed, it is a reality of this virus. But if and when that occurs we have to make sure and we are, that we are prepared.’

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