Police were surged at Parliament steps as an anti-mandate protest event took place in Wellington today.
Protesters woke to a second day outside the Beehive on Wednesday, despite Prime Minister Ardern being uninterested in engaging with them.
"I've seen a range of protests over my time and this is certainly not large in scale. And not representative of the vast majority of New Zealanders," Ardern told Newstalk ZB.
She said the protesters do have a right to be there, but is concerned about the misinformation being spread.
The day featured guest speakers and music blasting - including the National Anthem and Kiwi favourites such as 'Poi E' and 'Slice of Heaven'.
However, things took a more aggressive turn when protestors surged forward to make their way through a police barricade to the steps of Parliament just after 3pm. Three protesters were detained in the aftermath.
A series of chants and abuse were aimed at police and the Government throughout the day, with people shouting "you should be ashamed", "stand down Jacinda, you've been put on notice" and "you've got blood on your hands".
Around 100 police officers were standing side by side in front of Parliament, which decreased to far fewer police just after 4pm as the protest calmed down.
Protesters have said "they are in it for the long haul", with many vowing to camp out on Parliament's lawn for the rest of the week.
There were 204 community cases reported in New Zealand on Wednesday and 16 people in hospital with COVID.
