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COVID LATEST 

* 687 cases - 32 people in hospital, including eight in intensive care 
* New poll: What Kiwis really think of Covid elimination 
* What will the next big Covid variant look like? 
* Thomas Coughlan: National has forgotten the economy, it needs to remember 
* Claire Trevett: Is Judith Collins the only villain in 'pantomime' Parliament? 
* Aucklanders 'running out of options' after food delivery cancellations 

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is playing down fears that New Zealand could follow New South Wales and Victoria in being unable to eliminate Covid-19. 

It comes as the number of cases in the community today looks set to go past 700. 

Melbourne-based New Zealand epidemiologist Tony Blakely told Newstalk ZB's Mike Hosking he sees some worrying similarities between how the virus has been spreading in Sydney, in Melbourne, and now in Auckland. 

Australia's two most populated states have all but given up on completely eliminating the virus as they struggle to contain surging cases of the Delta variant. 

He hoped New Zealand would do better and not "be living with the virus like us".