Lockdown spreads across south Wales
ALMOST two million people in Wales will be in lockdown by the end of today after three more areas were put into local restrictions.
Residents of Neath Port Talbot, Torfaen and the Vale of Glamorgan will be subject to tough restrictions that will now extend across 11 local authorities from Newport in the east to Llanelli in the west.
The announcement came amid alarming rises in the rate of infections in areas already under lockdown, with the number of cases per 100,000 in Blaenau Gwent reaching 287.7 – one of the highest rates in the UK.
The three areas were announced just hours before lockdown began in Cardiff and Swansea, while restrictions were already in place in Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Caerphilly, Merthyr Tydfil, Newport, Rhondda Cynon Taf, and the town of Llanelli.
Those living in the areas under lockdown will not be able to cross county boundaries without a reasonable excuse, and will only be able to meet outdoors with anyone other than members of their own household.
Extended households will be suspended, and all licensed premises have to stop serving alcohol at 10pm.
Everyone over 11 will be required to wear face coverings in indoor places which are open to the public, such as shops, as well as on public transport.
Announcing the new restrictions, First Minister Mark Drakeford said: “Following a worrying rise in cases of coronavirus across south Wales, we took action on Friday to introduce local coronavirus restrictions in Llanelli and local restrictions will come into force in our two largest cities – Cardiff and Swansea – tonight.
“We are now taking further action and placing three more areas under local restrictions in south Wales – Neath Port Talbot, Torfaen and the Vale of Glamorgan – because we are seeing rising rates in these three areas.
“These areas also share borders with local authority areas where rates are much higher.
“Introducing restrictions in any parts of Wales is always an incredibly difficult decision for us to make.
“But we’re acting to protect people’s health and to try and break the chain of transmission and stop the situation from getting worse.
“This is not a regional lockdown – this is a series of local restrictions in each local authority area to respond to a specific rise in cases in each area, which have distinct and unique chains of transmission.
“In some places, such as Caerphilly and Newport, we have seen really positive falls in response and we hope they can begin to be relaxed if they continue.
“It’s really important everyone follows the rules where they live.
“We need everyone’s help to bring coronavirus under control. We need everyone to pull together and to follow the measures which are there to protect you and your loved ones.”
There are currently no areas under local lockdown in north Wales, although a spokesman for the Welsh Government said there is evidence coronavirus is increasing in some parts of the region.
Andrew RT Davies, shadow health spokesman for the Welsh Conservatives, questioned whether the new restrictions were too broad.
“The First Minister might not want it to be described as a ‘regional lockdown’ but with two million people in the south Wales corridor now under some form of restrictions, that’s unfortunately what it is,” he said.
“I once again repeat my calls from last week. I’d like to see a more targeted approach from ministers – local not regional.
“It is also incumbent on Labour ministers to bring forward urgent financial support for those businesses who will be badly hit by this announcement.
“Ministers should also reconsider the suspension of social bubbles/ extended households.
“The disregard for the mental health of individuals is very concerning and this could be a very difficult period for those living on their own. Please think again.
“And finally, what’s the Welsh Government’s strategy/end goal? Today they mention the prospect of lifting restrictions in areas previously in lockdown such as Caerphilly.
“But when that happens you’d expect the virus to circulate once again. This approach is likely unsustainable.”
Figures released yesterday showed 362 new cases of coronavirus had
been diagnosed in Wales in the past 24 hours.
Public Health Wales (PHW) says there were 362 new lab-confirmed cases of Covid-19 recorded for the Sunday, September 27 figures – slightly down from the 370 recorded the day before – although there had been no further deaths.
Dr Giri Shankar, incident director for the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak response at Public Health Wales, said: “Public Health Wales supports the announcement by the
Welsh Government today of local restrictions in Neath Port Talbot, the Vale of Glamorgan and Torfaen. These arrangements are necessary in order to bring transmission of the virus under control in these areas.”
Blaenau Gwent, which is one of six local authorities currently under a local lockdown, continues to record the highest rate of infections in Wales with 287.7 positive cases per 100,000 population in the last week.
As of Saturday, Burnley had the highest rate in England with an infection rate of 256.4 per 100,000 people.
Blaenau Gwent showed a small decrease in its test positivity rate to 10.6% (compared to 11.7% yesterday), but remains way above the national average of 4.7%.
Infection rates for Merthyr Tydfil jumped considerably to 225.4 cases per 100,000, compared to 169.1 yesterday while Rhondda Cynon Taf also remains high at 171.6 cases per 100,000 (compared to 136.4 on Saturday).
The Wales average per 100,000 population is now at 65.3 – up from 48.5 the day before.
Ahead of the weekend, Health Minister Vaughan Gething urged the people of the two cities not to “treat this weekend as a final blowout”.
The latest figures come after the First Minister for Wales explained the thinking behind his approach to the pandemic so far and outlined his best and worst-case scenarios for Christmas and what it would take for schools to close.
It means close to two million people in Wales – nearly 60% the population – will be under local lockdowns from tonight.