Covid in Wales: Mark Drakeford hopes 'stay home' rule can end in March

Wales' first minister says he hopes this will be the last three weeks of the "stay-at-home" requirement.

Mark Drakeford said any change depended on case rates falling and it was too soon to say if people would be able to travel beyond their local area.

He also confirmed he hoped primary school children aged eight and over may be able to return to school from 15 March if Covid cases continued to fall.

Talks will begin with non-essential shops about the prospects of reopening.

Mr Drakeford told BBC Radio Wales: "If in three weeks' time the numbers are still falling, the positivity rate is falling, the R number's below one, hospital pressures continue to reduce, then I hope we'll be able to move beyond 'stay at home'."

While Wales' case rate is at its lowest since September last year, the Welsh Government said the restrictions were currently needed to ensure a safe return to school.

Conservatives called for a "road map to recovery" and for "rough timescales" for reopening some of the hardest-hit sectors.

But Plaid Cymru said a "stay local" message was needed for as long as necessary.

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Friday's announcement is the latest three-week review of of the coronavirus lockdown imposed in Wales before Christmas.

Children aged between three and seven - those in the foundation phase - are returning to school from Monday.

The Welsh Government has already said the next review would consider if all primary pupils and some older students can return to schools and colleges from 15 March.

Mr Drakeford said: "In three weeks' time we would hope to see all primary aged children back in face-to-face learning in the classroom and those young people who are in secondary school who are preparing for examinations back with their teachers face-to-face as well."

Further down the line, talks are taking place on reopening tourism in time for Easter, with self-contained holiday accommodation likely to be prioritised.

"I met our tourism taskforce yesterday, and we will be having detailed discussions with them over the next couple of weeks, to see if there is anything we might be able to do around the Easter period," Mr Drakeford said on Friday.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said England will exit lockdown "cautiously" - a road map for easing restrictions is expected on Monday.

In Northern Ireland lockdown has been extended to 1 April, while in Scotland most lockdown measures are due to remain in place until the end of February.

What is the Covid case rate in Wales?

The case rate in Wales was one of the highest in the world for a period in December, but it has been falling since the week before Christmas.

At 83.7 per 100,000 people over seven days, the country now has the lowest rate of the UK nations, just below Scotland.

Flintshire has the highest case rate in Wales but it is also falling there too - and at its lowest point since early December. It is also the 161st highest in the UK.

Numbers of confirmed and suspected Covid patients are also at their lowest levels since 28 October.

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Wales went into lockdown on 20 December after a rise in cases blamed partly on a new, more infectious variant of the virus.

The rules mean non-essential travel is banned, pubs and restaurants are closed and that most shops have been shut.

The Welsh Government said one in three adults in Wales has had a coronavirus vaccine - latest figures show 822,633 people had been given their first dose in Wales.

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Welsh Conservative Senedd leader Andrew RT Davies said it is a priority to get more children to the classroom.

He called for dates for the return of those in key stage 2 and exam year groups, and said rough timescales "would be beneficial to many in the retail, hospitality, leisure and tourism sectors who are planning their survival".

"Preferably we'd like to see a uniform approach across the UK as we move forward but acknowledge that is unlikely with the current Labour administration in Cardiff Bay," he said.

"And whilst a cautious and prudent approach to coming out of lockdown is sensible, we also need to start to provide a roadmap to recovery for people across Wales."

Plaid Cymru's leader Adam Price warned Wales was "not there quite yet in terms of being ready to relax restrictions on a national level".

He said: "Infection rates remain high and the headroom we have remains low. At every step, action should be driven by data not dates."

"Travel restrictions should be eased with caution and the sensible approach would be to reintroduce the 'stay local' message for as long as necessary.

"It's vital that those who have lost their livelihoods continue to be supported and we support the Resolution Foundation's call this week for furlough to be extended for several months after lockdown restrictions end."

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Abolish the Assembly Party leader Richard Suchorzewski called for Mr Drakeford to make changes on the sale of non-essential items in supermarkets and other essential retailers.

"At the very least, he should allow the people of Wales to have the same rights to purchase what he regards as 'non-essential items' e.g. jumpers, shoes and underwear, as they are allowed to in English supermarkets," he said.

While Welsh shops are expected to close aisles selling goods deemed non-essential "if reasonably practicable", English stores can keep them open, although the UK government has asked shops to shut non-essential parts of their businesses where they are on different floors.

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February 19, 2021 at 08:45PM

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-56111548