What the next steps in easing restrictions are likely to be

YESTERDAY marked two major milestones in Wales’ reopening.

To the delight of everyone who has piled on the pounds over lockdown gyms have now reopened with individual or one-to-one training but not exercise classes at this stage.

People can now also for an exclusive household bubble with another household. Single adult households have been able to do this throughout the second wave and this new rule will count single persons and their already established bubble as a single household for these purposes.

However there are still large parts of our lives which are severely restricted due to the pandemic.

So what is next on the list for reopening?

We have gone through the key areas of Wales still to be reopened.

Remember, though, that the decisions on the easing of lockdown are dependent on who forms the next Welsh Government after the Senedd election on Thursday, and therefore the dates are not set in stone.

The dates are also dependent on the coronavirus situation in Wales at the time.

May 17

On May 13 the new Welsh Government will assess the latest round of restrictions to be lifted on May 17.

The provisional restrictions to be lifted are:

■■Indoor hospitality for pubs, bars restaurants and cafes; ■■Cinemas, theatres and museums; ■■Children’s soft play;

■■All tourist accommodation; and ■■Organised events like weddings can have up to 30 people indoors and 50 outdoors.

The changes will be welcomed by hospitality businesses, many of which do not have outdoor areas or are not commercially viable to only open outside.

This will also be the first time that theatres can reopen since the pandemic began in March last year.

What next?

First Minister Mark Drakeford has indicated that festivals may be given the go-ahead in Wales by mid-June. There are currently pilots in both Wales and England for these kinds of events that the current Welsh Government wants to look at before making a decision.

Mr Drakeford said it was “not unthinkable” that festivals and events like outdoor races could reopen by mid-June.

What about overseas travel? Overseas travel is currently pencilled in by the UK Government to restart on May 17.

However there is a lot of unease about this due the risks of importing new variants which our vaccines are not effective against.

Though the First Minister has significant powers in terms of lockdown and asking people to quarantine on their return from foreign travel, it is the UK Government that is responsible for striking bilateral deals with foreign countries to get them to recognise any UK coronavirus passport.

Mr Drakeford has indicated that though he is hesitant to about allowing overseas travel, he will follow the UK Government’s lead in this matter.