The New Zealand business events and meetings industry has been given some good news today with the announcement that the sector has had with confirmation large events with separate groups of 100 can now go ahead.

Conventions & Incentives New Zealand (CINZ) chief executive, Lisa Hopkins observed that the industry is welcoming NZ Government changes to Alert Level 2 which allow multiple groups of 100 people to attend conference events.

“We can now start preparing to welcome more people to our venues across the country”

“These new guidelines give our industry much more confidence to plan forward, knowing we can deliver larger events. We can now go ahead and confirm bookings for groups of 500, for example, by using five different divisions within the same venue, ensuring groups can move in and out of venues in a safe way,” she says.

The Government has issued general guidelines that can help event organisers work through their options and considerations.

The changes, which come into effect from 30 May, mean the overall cap remains at 100, not including staff, with multiple groups of 100 now allowed provided they are in separate ‘defined spaces’. Record-keeping for contact tracing is required for workers and clients/customers. People must keep one-metre distancing from people they don’t know where practicable. If the event facility is providing food and drink for consumption on-site, then the food and drink restrictions apply – but again these can be in multiples of 100.

Hopkins went on to add: “With New Zealand’s excellent track record so far in defeating Covid-19, our restrictions are likely to ease further in coming weeks and months, opening up further options for planning large-scale events. With the possibility of a trans-Tasman bubble as early as July, we can now start preparing to welcome more people to our venues across the country.

“New Zealand is ranked top of the world for ease of doing business, low corruption and peacefulness. Add to this New Zealand’s reputation as a world leader for government COVID-19 communication, our excellent venues and infrastructure, and we are in a strong position to be one of the most globally trusted places to meet.”