Editorial: It's more important than ever to stick to the outbreak rules

A patient is vaccinated against Covid-19 in the Vienna Imperial Palace in Vienna, Austria. Photo / AP

The Covid-19 pandemic continues to be an elusive opponent both here and overseas.

Whenever governments and hopeful citizens seem to get a glimpse of stability, the coronavirus manages to cloud the horizon again. It requires constant management.

The weekend brought totals of 175 and 207 new cases in New Zealand's outbreak, another death, cases in Taranaki, Rotorua and Taupō, and anti-lockdown protests in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch.

The pandemic here is now more like situations in countries overseas with the virus embedded, but New Zealand's death and case numbers are comparatively still very low and the country is no longer lagging on vaccination levels.

There's a lot that could have been done better, especially around the vaccination rollout, rapid tests, and managed isolation. Yet there's also a mostly careful plan being followed - if too slowly for some.

Those people in New Zealand who believe the choices and decisions to be made around Covid are essentially simple should take a look at the worsening situation in Europe.

Back in the Northern Hemisphere summer, governments in Europe relaxed restrictions amid improved vaccination numbers.

Now the continent, especially eastern Europe, is experiencing a surge in infections. Europe is making up more than half of the average weekly global infections and about half of the latest deaths, Reuters reports.

The Netherlands yesterday moved into a partial lockdown - not seen in western Europe since mid-year. Austria is expected to decide today whether to introduce a lockdown on unvaccinated people.

There's been a marked climb in coronavirus daily cases on a seven-day rolling average in countries such as Slovenia, Austria, Croatia, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ireland, Hungary, Greece, Iceland, Denmark, Norway, Poland and Germany.

Even countries that have coped well recently such as Spain, Portugal, France, and Italy are dealing with slight case rises.

Death rates and hospitalisations are steady in more highly vaccinated countries - showing the value of the shots. Fatalities have risen in places where rates of full vaccination are below 65 per cent of the entire populations. Vaccine hesitancy is highest in the central and eastern areas of Europe.

The causes of Europe's problems are known there and can apply here: Pockets of unvaccinated people; waning immunity for those people who got shots early; complacency about mask-wearing; cold seasonal weather impacts; more mobility allowing more spread; children aged 5 to 11 still to get shots; and authorities removing restrictions too early.

Some solutions are apparent there and are in place or being worked on here: Get vaccination rates up high; keep enough restrictions to suppress infections; use vaccine certificates, masks, spacing, and booster shots to aid public safety.

Yet it often seems as though what's happening here is taking place in our own bubble, with debate mostly lacking context from outside. Strong opinions bounce around the virtual town square, picking apart every aspect of New Zealand's pandemic response.

To be fair, most Kiwis probably slide back and forth along a scale between frustration, caution, impatience, pessimism and positivity when it comes to how we're doing.

The temptation with the pandemic is to focus on Covid issues and responses in isolation when they are obviously interwoven. A public fuss over each one magnifies the noise, as though it's all an overall disaster.

Measures against the virus also have to be thought of as a total package. Individual elements, such as vaccines, shouldn't be relied on as the only defence.

New Zealanders should stick to the rules while more people are vaccinated. As Europe is showing, if countries take their eye off the ball, the coronavirus will make them pay.