Wellington  - The New Zealand government is likely to order the national cricket team not to go to Zimbabwe for a scheduled tour in July, Prime Minister John Key indicated on Monday.

The cabinet had not yet considered the issue, he said at his weekly news conference, "but I'd be deeply sceptical about whether they would be going."

Key said he realized that he would have to stop the team going if New Zealand Cricket was to avoid heavy financial penalties from the International Cricket Council which has scheduled the visit on its future tours programme.

"We don't support that regime," he said. "We don't support what's happening in that country, and we don't want to give a signal that we do."

New Zealand would be following the example of former Australian prime minister John Howard who stopped his country's team going to Zimbabwe in 2007. (dpa)