‘Blunders’ force New Zealand’s health minister to resign

NEW Zealand’s health minister has resigned after making a series of personal blunders during the coronavirus pandemic.

David Clark had earlier described himself as an “idiot” for breaking the nation’s strict lockdown measures and last week appeared to blame a health official for border lapses, generating an angry reaction from the public. Clark said he had put all his energy into the job as he announced his resignation.

He said: “But it has become increasingly clear to me that my continuation in the role is distracting from the government’s overall response to Covid-19.”

While New Zealand’s health response has been praised around the world after it managed to eliminate community transmission of the virus, Clark has been widely ridiculed.

His latest gaffe came last week when he appeared to place the blame for allowing some returning travellers to leave quarantine without being tested with the director-general of health, Ashley Bloomfield.