Our new freedoms must not be abused

THE Welsh Government’s lifting of the “stay local” rule on Monday will be warmly welcomed by many.

Since March we have been confined to our communities, only able to travel short distances to pick up essentials, undertake exercise and see nearby loved ones outdoors.

While most people accepted the measure as a vital component in stopping the spread of coronavirus, it was a sacrifice that proved hard to bear.

Weeks and months have gone by without people seeing their friends, without children seeing their grandparents and without families being able to enjoy holidays they’d planned.

This period of isolation will also have an untold impact on people’s mental health, particularly those who live alone. However, this strict stay local message has been successful in curtailing the spread of Covid-19 and has lessened the burden on our NHS.

Despite significant efforts to boost bed numbers in hospitals, in particular creating more than a dozen field hospitals across Wales, much of this additional capacity has not needed to be used.

For the past few weeks we have seen the gradual decline of positive cases of the virus and death rates, although we are yet to see a day with zero reported deaths since March.

We are now at a crucial point in our battle against this cruel infection which has affected all our lives to differing degrees. Certain restrictions are beginning to be lifted, giving people a sense of normality once again.

Allowing people to travel across Wales again will prove to be a huge boost for the tourism industry, which has been starved of trade for most of this year. This, combined with the Welsh Government permitting two households to meet indoors in an exclusive “bubble”, will allow families to reunite again after a substantial time apart.

Now that guidelines on travel limits are to be lifted altogether, what’s important is what people do at their destination.

Social distancing, handwashing and the wearing of face coverings will now become more, not less, important.

Wales’ full testing capacity will also need to be utilised so that cases and local outbreaks can be tracked and dealt with quickly.

Coronavirus is still circulating in our communities, and the last thing any of us wants is for these freedoms to be taken away once again due to people abusing them.