Morning Report

A 16-year-old girl who arrived back into the country from Spain on Friday is being held in an Auckland hotel with no idea when she's going to be able to get back home to her parents near Christchurch.

Nadia Leech had been on a student exchange programme in Cadiz, in southern Spain since early February, and after two flights home were cancelled, managed to get back to Auckland last Friday.

She wasn't allowed to continue on to Christchurch and was instead taken to a central-city hotel.

Nadia's mother, Kylie Leech, says when she arrived, it felt like Customs and Ministry of Health staff didn't expect there to be minors, and didn't know what to do with them.

Kylie says she was taken to a hotel where she could then self-isolate but she was put in a suite with two other minors, including a 17-year-old boy.

Despite the hope that she might be able to make it home soon, none of the family have been told when or if that could happen.

Kylie says she wasn't even told that there was going to be repatriation flights put on for people to get home, and she doesn't know if her daughter will be eligible for them.

She says she just wants some certainty about their situation - she says there hasn't been much recognition of the need to help minors.

The Ministry of Health was approached for comment, but did not reply.

Iwi are waiting for the government's plan for $30 million in targeted Covid-19 Māori health funding to be released next week. 

The government has made $56 million available to Māori communities to respond to the coronavirus after leaders criticised the lack of response, $30million of which is for health. 

In the meantime, iwi are continuing to carrying out their Covid-19 response plans off their own backs. 

Meriana Johnsen reports.

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