A woman trapped in COVID-19 quarantine is begging Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern for an exemption so she can see her dying mother.
Hannah McBeth is currently trapped in the Grand Mercure Hotel in Auckland after returning from Australia to be with her terminally ill mother.
She is stuck in a mandatory quarantine for 14 days to ensure she doesn't contribute to the spread of COVID-19.
McBeth is one of 24 people who have applied to leave the quarantine early to visit ill relatives, but her case was denied.
However after the High Court ruled a fellow applicant should be allowed home, the Government began conducting a review into the cases and McBeth is hoping she'll be allowed home.
"Obviously I don't want to be here, stuck in this hotel," McBeth told The Project on Tuesday night.
"I want to be able to be home with my mum and my family, and be a support to my dad especially and looking after mum but it's just impossible because I'm stuck in this little tiny hotel room."
On Tuesday Ardern said she has found it extremely hard denying friends and family the right to visit dying relatives during lockdown and now McBeth is asking for her help.
McBeth shared an emotional message on Tuesday's show where she asked the Prime Minister for empathy.
"Hi Jacinda, I think you are doing an excellent job but there are probably just a few things you need to have a look at," she said.
"My situation is I just want to get home to see my mum, and there's probably a few others of us that would love for you just to show a bit of compassion and consideration and potentially put yourself in our shoes and what would you want to happen if it was you.
"I'm hoping that you can empathise with us and look into it for us and get us home to our loved ones."
McBeth says she doesn't understand why she can't be tested immediately so she can be cleared to see her mum.
"All I want to do is go home and be with my family. I'm healthy, I'm fit, I'm well, I've had my temperature tested, I don't know how many times now. I don't know why I can just get tested for coronavirus and three days later the results come back and I'm clear."
Her mum's cardiologist agrees McBeth should be allowed and has included a letter of support in her application, but for now all she can do is wait and see.
However, on Tuesday, Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield said people can carry the virus but be asymptomatic and test negative which is why the quarantine is necessary.
