Rotorua MIQ future unclear as most NZ facilities return to being hotels

Rotorua Sudima Hotel. Photo / NZME

Time is nearly up for MIQ but the future of Rotorua's three facilities, which have accommodated 17,000 returnees, is still unknown.

On Thursday, Minister Chris Hipkins announced that 28 of the facilities would return to being hotels by the end of June, scaling down managed isolation and quarantine (MIQ) as international travel starts back up.

Three of the 32 hotels used for MIQ in New Zealand were in Rotorua.

Across all three were 535 spots for returnees; 227 in Sudima, 134 in Ibis and 124 in Rydges hotels.

Rotorua Sudima and Ibis hotels became managed isolation facilities in June 2020 and Rotorua Rydges began a month later.

Head of MIQ Chris Bunny said there's been no decision about which four of the 32 hotels will continue to provide MIQ services through to December.

Rydges Rotorua. Photo / NZME

He declined to say when individual contracts would end on the grounds of commercial sensitivity.

On any given day there have been about 400 people working across Rotorua's three facilities over three shifts, he said.

The MIQ workforce included multiple agencies that rostered staff from Rotorua and other locations.

He said the basic footprint for each of the city's facilities was one police officer, eight Defence Force personnel, six security officers, six health staff, 20 hotel staff and six in other roles per shift.

He did not say how many police, health staff and defence workers in the city had returned their usual roles.

Nationwide, more than 300 healthcare workers and 230 police have returned to frontline duties, while more than 600 defence personnel will now return to their units.

He said all facilities will have a 90-day decommissioning process which "will be flexible so hotels can return to tourism operations before the end of this 90 days if they choose".

He said the process will be important to allow hotels to re-enter the market following remediation or refurbishment.

Rotorua Ibis Hotel. Photo / NZME

He said the Government's decision gave MIQ certainty to start negotiations with its partners to "plan for the future".

He said it would now start discussions with its workforce and the facilities about their futures and some facilities were still needed for certain groups in the next few months.

Bunny said the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment and other employers will be discussing options with the workers soon.

"We know this is an unsettling time for our workers and will do everything possible to ensure they are well looked after and treated fairly."

MIQ is working with iwi partner Te Arawa on a poroporoaki (farewell) to MIQ.