A dramatic increase in the number quarantined arrivals who attended a Christchurch burial than first reported.

And now a Christchurch funeral director is expressing frustration at health officials.

He was told about 10 people were attending, and refused entry –  but they turned up to the burial on Tuesday with health officials.

This morning, the Ministry of Health confirmed 18 quarantined arrivals from overseas attended the burial on Tuesday.

It follows revelations two women with Covid-19 left their hotel in Auckland without being tested, and then stopped to meet people on their way to Wellington.

Yesterday, National MP Michael Woodhouse revealed details about the pair meeting friends including having “a cuddle and kiss with them.”

The Ministry of Health expanded quarantine to Christchurch this week – with about 90 people in isolation at the Commodore Airport Hotel.

Lamb and Hayward chief executive Steven Parkyn told Chris Lynch he was contacted by the isolation unit who told him “about 10 people” from the hotel would be let out early to attend the burial.

This despite the Ministry of Health announcing nine days ago that such exemptions were no longer permitted.

Steven Parkyn says he did manage to find out that the people who attended the funeral arrived in New Zealand “in two separate groups on the 6th of June and 9th of June.”

He says it was extremely frustrating when officials couldn’t tell him any of the names attending the burial.

However, he says he make it clear to the Canterbury District Health Board that if these people wanted to attend the burial, it would be up to the health board to take responsibility for that.

He says they were kept 50 metres away from the main groups of mourners, all were made to wear masks, and they were escorted by a CDHB nurse.

Mr Parkyn says “our border controls are our only defense against Covid19, and in order to keep everybody safe, people need to be in a quarantine period, who have come in from overseas, and surely they need to be tested, and looked after in that quarantine period.”

He says “for the Ministry of Health to consider that it’s acceptable to allow those people out of quarantine and potentially not tested, and to gather with a large group of people at any event, but particularly at funeral with elderly and compromised people, that is just unacceptable.”

However, Ministry of Health Spokesperson Peter Abernethy says it was actually “two groups of nine” who were provided a compassionate exemption to attend the burial of a loved one on Tuesday 16 June.

He says “currently no one is being granted compassionate leave after the Minister of Health put a temporary hold in place.”

“Similarly, no one is now being allowed compassionate leave to attend tangihanga and funerals since the country moved to Alert Level 1.”

“At the Christchurch funeral both groups practiced physical distancing while at the burial and were escorted throughout by two staff from the quarantine facility.”

“The two groups travelled separately to and from the burial in private vehicles.

The two staff accompanying them followed in a separate vehicle.

Both the staff and 18 guests wore masks through-out the visit.”

He says “this exemption was approved prior to the change in rules requiring a negative test prior to them leaving the managed isolation facility.”