‘We have come too far to let this happen again...’
▪ Drakeford issues plea for only essential travel ▪ Pubs, restaurants and cafes will close at 10pm ▪ £500 payments to encourage self-isolation
NEW measures including the closure of hospitality venues at 10pm and a £500 payment for each person on a low income who is asked to self-isolate were announced last night by First Minister Mark Drakeford in a bid to stem the rise in coronavirus cases.
Six local authority areas in Wales are already in local lockdown, with Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Newport and Merthyr Tydfil following Rhondda Cynon Taff and Caerphilly into such restrictions at 6pm yesterday.
Cardiff, Swansea, the Vale of Glamorgan, Carmarthenshire, Anglesey, Conwy, Denbighshire and Flintshire are now classed as “areas of concern”.
Mr Drakeford, in a television address, said: “In the weeks and months ahead of us, there is a very real possibility that we could see coronavirus regain a foothold in our local communities, towns and cities.
“None of us wants to see that happen again. 2020 has been an incredibly difficult year. We have all sacrificed so much. Families have lost loved ones. People have lost jobs and livelihoods. This is a highly-infectious virus – we cannot let it take a hold of our lives again. We have come too far to let this happen again.”
The new measures announced
across Wales are:
■ Pubs, cafes, restaurants and casinos (and any other hospitality businesses) will have to close at 10pm. They will also have to provide table service only. This applies from tomorrow at 6pm;
■ Off-licences, including supermarkets, will also have to stop selling alcohol at 10pm; and
■ A £500 payment will be issued to support people on low incomes who need to self-isolate and regulations will be strengthened to ensure that employers support those who need to self-isolate in this way.
Mr Drakeford also made clear that people in Wales:
■ Must work from home wherever possible;
■ Can only meet six people indoors, and make sure that those six people are all part of their extended household;
■ Must wear face coverings on public transport, in shops and in enclosed public spaces; and
■ Only travel when it is “really necessary”.
The First Minister said: “The fewer people we meet and the fewer journeys we make, the safer we all are.”
It came as fears of a second wave across the border in England led Prime Minister Boris Johnson to bring in a range of new restrictions.
Mr Drakeford said the Welsh Government’s approach to lifting previous lockdown measures had been “at a different pace and in a different way to that across our border”.
He told the Senedd earlier yesterday that this meant Wales starts “in a very different place” to England, with many of the measures spoken about by Mr Johnson, such as the recommendation to work from home where possible, already in place in Wales.
The First Minister added, that following a Cobra meeting earlier yesterday: “The First Ministers of Scotland and Northern Ireland, the Prime Minister and I agreed to take some further co- ordinated action across the UK to control the spread of coronavirus.”
He added: “Because we have taken a different approach in Wales, some of the actions being introduced elsewhere are already in place here.”
Following a question by Adam Price, the leader of Plaid Cymru, Mr Drakeford said one of the “central dilemmas” in Wales was the different rates of coronavirus across the country.
Mr Drakeford said there was a “blended approach” in Wales, with national measures such as encouraging people to work from home.
He added: “In Caerphilly and the other local authorities where local lockdown measures are concerned, you can’t leave the county borough without a good reason for doing so, but beyond that I think every one of us should be asking ourselves, ‘Is that journey really essential?’ Because the fewer people you meet and the fewer journeys you make, the less danger you are posing to yourself and others.
“So I think that as a message to people everywhere about minimising travel and staying close to home as much as you are able to is another brick in a national wall that we can build.”
Mr Drakeford said that following that, he was “of the same mind” as Mr Price that local measures for local circumstances remained the right response.
In the six areas now in local lockdown, people must not enter or leave each of them without a reasonable excuse and are only able to meet other households outdoors, including members of their extended households. All licensed premises must close at 11pm tonight before following the national rule of 10pm from tomorrow night onwards.
Health Minister Vaughan Gething told BBC Wales he hoped such local lockdowns could be lifted as soon as
possible so areas were more in line with the Wales-wide measures. But he gave no timeline on when the national measures would be lifted, saying that Wales faces “an extraordinary autumn and winter”.
Mr Drakeford said in his address: ”Your efforts helped us get through the first wave in the spring – you followed the rules and helped reduce cases of coronavirus, protecting the NHS and saving lives. We need everyone to follow the rules and guidance and to take the steps to protect them and their loved ones. Together, we can keep Wales safe.”
The Welsh Conservatives’ Shadow Health Minister Andrew RT Davies said: “It is of course a very concerning time for many people, especially those in the six counties in south Wales that have had local restrictions put in place, and the other counties under threat of the same.
“All through this pandemic, we Welsh Conservatives have said that the measures taken to combat the spread of Covid-19, from the earlier lockdown to local lockdowns to the ‘rule of six’ and to the compulsory wearing of face coverings in shops, must be proportional to the risk, and with time limits.
“However, it’s time to consider hyperlocal lockdowns based on the best available data – which means that the Test, Track and Protect scheme must be equally hyper-accurate – so that as little of Wales and its economy as possible is closed, even temporarily.
“Safeguarding lives as well as livelihoods, and sheltering the economy, must remain the priorities.”
Plaid leader Mr Price called on the Welsh Government to go further than closing pubs at 10pm in areas where there are local lockdowns. He said that deadline should be pushed forward to 6pm and that the Welsh Government should consider closing pubs indoors.
He said these steps should be backed by “sector-specific financial support to affected businesses”.
He added: “Nationwide, there should be an enforceable ban on non-essential travel from lockdown areas in the rest of the UK into Wales to keep communities where there is decreased transmission safe. The First Minister should also consider having Covid-free areas and areas of low community transmission which would be exempt from any nationwide changes. This would serve two purposes – it would incentivise continued adherence to the rules in areas of low transmission and increase adherence to the rules in areas of higher transmission.”
Meanwhile, in his own address to the nation last night, Mr Johnson pleaded with people to follow the new rules, claiming that breaches of previous restrictions by “freedomloving” Britons had helped the virus return.
Mr Johnson said: “While the vast majority have complied with the rules, there have been too many breaches – too many opportunities for our invisible enemy to slip through undetected.
“The virus has stated to spread again in an exponential way. Infections are up, hospital admissions are climbing.”
Mr Johnson said he was “deeply, spiritually reluctant” to infringe on people’s freedoms, but unless action was taken now there would be a need for harsher measures later “when the deaths have already mounted”.
He added: “If people do not follow the new rules we have set out, we must reserve the right to go further”.
But Mr Johnson finished his televised address with a plea for a “spirit of togetherness” to get the country though the months ahead.
“If we follow these simple rules together, we will get through this winter together,” he said. “There are unquestionably difficult months to come. And the fight against Covid is by no means over. I have no doubt, however, that there are great days ahead.”
Mr Johnson said the UK had reached “a perilous turning point” in the face of a second wave of Covid19 cases.
BORIS Johnson warned new coronavirus restrictions in England could last six months, with office staff working from home, the wider use of face masks and a 10pm curfew on pubs and restaurants.
He said that the new curbs could continue well beyond Christmas and New Year “unless we palpably make progress” in controlling the spread of the virus.
The Prime Minister also announced tougher enforcement measures, with businesses facing fines or closure for failing to comply with coronavirus rules, and people facing £200 penalties for failing to wear masks where required or breaching the so-called “rule of six”.
The military could be brought in to free up police officers to tackle coronavirus rulebreakers, the Prime Minister said.
He set out measures for England in the House of Commons, but stressed that all parts of the UK were united in the need for decisive action to prevent the virus getting out of control.
In Scotland, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon went further, imposing a ban on household visits from today.
And she suggested the tougher measures may mean they do not have to be in place as long as restrictions in England.
Mr Johnson said the UK had now reached “a perilous turning point” in the face of a second wave of Covid19 cases.
His announcement came as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the UK passed 400,000, with a further 4,926 lab-confirmed cases as of 9am yesterday.
The UK Government said a further 37 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 as of yesterday.
The measures being introduced in England over the coming days include:
Asking office workers who can, to work from home, although construction workers, retail staff and people performing essential services should continue to attend their workplaces.
From tomorrow, pubs, bars and restaurants will be table-service only and hospitality, leisure and entertainment venues will be subject to a 10pm closing time. Takeaways will also close from 10pm to 5am, although they will be allowed to deliver.
Face coverings will be required for taxi passengers from today and for retail staff and hospitality customers, except when sitting down eating or drinking, from tomorrow.
Covid-secure guidelines will become legal obligations for retail, leisure and tourism firms, with businesses facing the risk of fines or closure for failing to comply.
From Monday, a maximum of 15 people will be allowed to attend wedding ceremonies and receptions.
From tomorrow the rule of six will be extended to cover indoor team sports, such as five-a-side football games.
Plans to allow business conferences and crowds at sporting events from October 1 have been shelved.
Setting out tougher penalties for those who “brazenly defy” the restrictions, Mr Johnson said £10,000 fines would be applied to businesses breaking the rules.
The penalty for failing to wear a mask or breaking the rule of six will double to £200 for a first offence.
The police could be given military support to enable them to focus on coronavirus cases, with troops performing office roles or guarding sensitive sites.
The Prime Minister insisted the measures did not amount to a second lockdown.
“This is by no means a return to the full lockdown of March, we’re not issuing a general instruction to stay at home, we will ensure that schools, colleges and universities stay open, because nothing is more important than the education, health and wellbeing of our young people,” he said.
But he warned that tougher measures may be needed if the R number, the average number of people someone with Covid-19 infects, remains above one.
“I must emphasise that if all our actions fail to bring the R below one then we reserve the right to deploy greater firepower with significantly greater restrictions,” he warned.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said families were worried that “the government doesn’t have a strategy” and “this is a time of national crisis but we need clear leadership”.
Mr Johnson was also challenged about the troubled NHS Test and Trace system, run by Tory peer Baroness Harding, but insisted it was “nonsense” to blame that for the rising number of cases.
“Testing and tracing has very little or nothing to do with the spread or the transmission of the disease,” he said.
Paul Hunter, professor in medicine at the University of East Anglia, said there was a question over whether the measures announced by the Prime Minister would “in themselves be sufficient to reverse the increase in cases as we move into autumn”.
Prof Hunter added: “It is doubtful that the measures currently being enacted will be sufficient to reduce the R value to below one much before this side of Christmas.”
The UK Government faced renewed calls to do more to support businesses, with the hospitality industry warning that the new restrictions would be a “crushing
PEMBROKESHIRE Council has asked police to investigate a coach load of holidaymakers from Bolton and the north-west of England due to arrive in Tenby today after they were turned away from Porthcawl.
The coach rolled into Porthcawl on Monday only to be greeted by news that Bridgend County Borough Council was to go into local lockdown 24 hours later.
The bus will now travel on to the popular seaside town in Pembrokeshire, a county where coronavirus infection rates remain some of the lowest in Wales.
The council said Dyfed-Powys Police told it there was nothing stopping the bus arriving in Pembrokeshire and instead the council will ramp up enforcement around the town.
The coach full of tourists turned up at the Seabank Hotel on Porthcawl’s seafront on Monday afternoon having come all the way from Bolton and the north-west of England.
Instead of staying the four nights, the hotel rearranged their stay and transferred them to a sister hotel in Tenby due to the restrictions that were due to come in to place. Bolton is at the centre of local lockdown in northern England with an infection rate of 99 cases per 100,000, which was the highest in England at the start of September. In Pembrokeshire, the infection rate stands at just 5.6 cases per 100,000.
Even though there are restrictions in place there, the rules say residents from Bolton are allowed to go on holiday outside the area with people from their own household.
In Wales, the rules are more stringent and say people cannot travel in or out of an area “without good reason”. The rule has already seen two pensioners from Caerphilly lose hundreds of pounds for holidays that they had to cancel when the county went into lockdown.
The coach tour was run by Alfa Travel, which is based in Chorley in England. The company said its coach was not solely comprised of holidaymakers travelling from Bolton, but from customers across the North West region.
A spokesperson said: “We carefully monitor government advice and under the current restrictions in place, residents are still able to travel out of Bolton for the purpose of taking a holiday. Again contrary to media reports, at no point were the customers travelling with the intention of attending the now cancelled Porthcawl Elvis festival.
“Further to the announcement of restrictions in Bridgend, we have been in regular correspondence with the county council and are moving the guests out of the restricted area, as soon as is reasonably practical to do so, as agreed with the council. We have a duty of care to the wellbeing of our guests, as well as the residents of the local area to comply with the restrictions and have acted quickly to make sure we are complying with the ever-changing rules.
“The hotel will remain closed from Wednesday until further notice.”
The news led to anger from people living in the county and further afield who questioned why visitors were allowed to travel from a town with such high levels of coronavirus infection.
One person said: “That’s ludicrous. We’ve got a caravan in Amroth and aren’t allowed to visit from the Rhondda, even though we’d be confined to a caravan and not in contact with anyone else.”
Another Pembrokeshire resident pointed out: “They can’t mix in their own town, but can come to Wales and do what they want.”
Pembrokeshire council said it had referred the matter to the police.
A spokesman said: “There are no restrictions to stop people leaving Bolton to go on holiday other than they should be doing so with people with whom they live (or in a ‘bubble’ with).
“There were no current restrictions on the bus-load of persons leaving Porthcawl either at the time, and nothing to stop them from being in Tenby.”
He added the council’s enforcement team would be monitoring premises in Tenby to make sure they were complying with the current regulations.
Sian Gwenllian, Plaid Cymru MS for Arfon, said: “People in lockdown areas in England can travel to other areas including to Wales on holiday. People in lockdown areas in Wales can’t travel out of area, including to other parts of Wales. Doesn’t make sense to me.”
The Bolton holidaymakers had booked a short break at the Seabank Hotel in Porthcawl through Alfa Travel and Leisureplex Hotels Limited.
But when it was confirmed Bridgend would be the next area to go into a local lockdown, the hotel organised a transfer to its sister hotel in Tenby, the Cliffe Norton Hotel, a 53-bedroom hotel overlooking Tenby’s North Beach.
A source at the hotel said the bus was due to arrive today and the residents would be staying “only for a few days”.
A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “”We cannot comment on individual cases or on whether or not English regulations enable people to travel beyond areas subject to local restrictions.
“We want to do everything we can to keep Wales safe and prevent the spread of the virus. We would ask anyone with symptoms of the virus, who thinks they may be ill or lives with someone who is ill not to come to Wales for the time being.
“The approach we have taken when introducing local restrictions has been to prevent the spread of the virus out of those areas. As a result, people living in parts of Wales where local restrictions are in place need a ‘reasonable excuse’ to enter or leave their local authority area.”