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| Covid: People in Wales asked not to travel abroad in 2021 | Covid: People in Wales asked not to travel abroad in 2021 |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Welsh ministers say people should only go abroad from Monday for "essential purposes" | Welsh ministers say people should only go abroad from Monday for "essential purposes" |
| People in Wales have been asked not go on holiday abroad in 2021, even if they are allowed to. | People in Wales have been asked not go on holiday abroad in 2021, even if they are allowed to. |
| From Monday, people in England can travel to a small number of countries. | From Monday, people in England can travel to a small number of countries. |
| Welsh ministers said people should only travel from 17 May for "essential purposes" while Mark Drakeford urged people to stay in Wales. | |
| Meanwhile, plans to allow customers indoors in pubs, and museums and cinemas to reopen, will go ahead for Monday. | |
| Mr Drakeford told a press conference Wales would move to Covid alert level two from Monday. | |
| Further moves to ease restrictions will be looked at the start of June - but the first minister said he was considering whether that would need to be delayed because of a variant of the virus from India. | |
| Concern over Indian variant | Concern over Indian variant |
| It came after Mr Drakeford said officials "decided to hold back" on relaxing some lockdown restrictions on Monday because of the concerns. | |
| Experts are concerned the variant has mutations that may make it more transmissible, but it is not yet known if it causes more severe disease or if it might make current vaccines less effective. | Experts are concerned the variant has mutations that may make it more transmissible, but it is not yet known if it causes more severe disease or if it might make current vaccines less effective. |
| Why is the India variant causing concern in the UK? | Why is the India variant causing concern in the UK? |
| A total of 26 cases of two variants first identified in India have been found in Wales as of last Thursday - including 11 of a type identified by officials as a "variant of concern". | |
| Mr Drakeford told Sky News ministers had thought about "moving ahead with the reopening of smaller events" as well as "liberalising the rules in the way in which people can meet together, not just in their extended household but beyond that", but both were now on hold. | |
| Separately, a UK government app that will act as a vaccine passport is due to be available in England on Monday, but the first minister said there was likely to be a four-week gap before it is available in Wales due to technical reasons. | |
| Most people who travel from Wales will be doing it from airports like Bristol, the first minister said | |
| Mr Drakeford admitted his travel advice was not a rule because it would be "unenforceable", but urged caution against "importing" coronavirus from other parts of the world. | |
| "We know most people who travel from Wales will be doing it from Bristol, Manchester, London, so once those airports are open and travel across the UK is allowed, then people from Wales will be able to travel," he said. | "We know most people who travel from Wales will be doing it from Bristol, Manchester, London, so once those airports are open and travel across the UK is allowed, then people from Wales will be able to travel," he said. |
| Mr Drakeford said did not want to "make people feel guilty" about going abroad, but urged people to "think of their own safety and the safety of others", adding there were "fantastic opportunities" to take a holiday in Wales instead. | |
| If people decided to travel abroad, Mr Drakeford said there would be "extra assistance", including more testing, for them returning from countries on the green list such as Portugal, Israel and Singapore. | |
| Pubs will open indoors for the first time since last December | |
| What Covid rules are changing on Monday? | |
| When alert level two begins: | |
| Pubs and restaurants can reopen indoors for groups of six people from up to six different households | |
| Holiday accommodation can fully reopen | |
| Cinemas, theatres bingo halls, bowling alleys, indoor play centres and areas, casinos and amusement arcade can reopen | |
| Up to 30 people can take part in indoor activities, and up to 50 in organised outdoor activities | |
| From 24 May, restrictions on numbers of visitors to care homes will be eased. | |
| Mr Drakeford told his press conference that, if the situation remained positive by the start of June, he would look at whether Wales could move to alert level one, but may need to delay that because of the Indian variant. | |
| This move would include "looking at relaxing the rules further around people meeting in their own homes, increasing the number of people able to attend wedding receptions and restarting larger events". | |
| Pub owner Ellen Morris says it will be hard for the hospitality trade to police the new rules | Pub owner Ellen Morris says it will be hard for the hospitality trade to police the new rules |
| How have businesses reacted? | How have businesses reacted? |
| Ellen Morris, the owner of two pubs in Bala, Gwynedd, welcomed the relaxation of the rules but said it would be difficult to police rules which dictate only six people from six different household can meet. | Ellen Morris, the owner of two pubs in Bala, Gwynedd, welcomed the relaxation of the rules but said it would be difficult to police rules which dictate only six people from six different household can meet. |
| "They are grown adults - they should be able to decide, it shouldn't be me telling them you can do this," she told BBC Radio Wales. | "They are grown adults - they should be able to decide, it shouldn't be me telling them you can do this," she told BBC Radio Wales. |
| "They call it hospitality - I don't feel I'm being very hospitable these days. We are talking about people's mental health here. It's been a long enough year without being left out of groups." | |
| Mr Drakeford said social distancing rules in hospitality venues could be lifted if transmissions continued to fall. | |
| DJ Stacey Alford is frustrated by stricter rules in Wales than in England | DJ Stacey Alford is frustrated by stricter rules in Wales than in England |
| DJ Stacey Alford, from Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan, has been receiving support from the UK government's freelancers' fund and Universal Credit. | DJ Stacey Alford, from Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan, has been receiving support from the UK government's freelancers' fund and Universal Credit. |
| She said she had been "extremely cautious" and followed the rules very closely, but was frustrated by stricter rules in Wales than in England. | She said she had been "extremely cautious" and followed the rules very closely, but was frustrated by stricter rules in Wales than in England. |
| "My bugbear is we can't even do things like background noise, so those opportunities are gone, but DJs in England are able to do that." | "My bugbear is we can't even do things like background noise, so those opportunities are gone, but DJs in England are able to do that." |
| Wedding planner Gail Windley says weddings of 30 people are still too small for most people | Wedding planner Gail Windley says weddings of 30 people are still too small for most people |
| The relaxation will also mean indoor play centres can open, and indoor wedding ceremonies of up to 30 people can take place. | The relaxation will also mean indoor play centres can open, and indoor wedding ceremonies of up to 30 people can take place. |
| Gail Windley, a wedding planner from Swansea, welcomed the news but said it would still mean weddings would be too small for most couples, and criticised a lack of clarity about further easing. | Gail Windley, a wedding planner from Swansea, welcomed the news but said it would still mean weddings would be too small for most couples, and criticised a lack of clarity about further easing. |
| Charmaine Heydenrych, who owns a soft play centre in Cardiff, said she was "ready" to open but said being limited to 30 people was "not sustainable". | Charmaine Heydenrych, who owns a soft play centre in Cardiff, said she was "ready" to open but said being limited to 30 people was "not sustainable". |
| People in England and Scotland can take holidays abroad in a small number of so-called "green" countries without having to quarantine when they return. | People in England and Scotland can take holidays abroad in a small number of so-called "green" countries without having to quarantine when they return. |
| Wales will be adopting the same "traffic light" system, with countries classified as green, amber and red, meaning people will be able to travel to a small number of foreign destinations without the need to quarantine on their return. | |
| Mandatory quarantine for countries not on the green list remains in place. | |
| From 24 May, a "paper-based vaccination status" will be available for people in Wales who have had two doses of vaccination and need to urgently travel to a country that requires Covid vaccination proof. | From 24 May, a "paper-based vaccination status" will be available for people in Wales who have had two doses of vaccination and need to urgently travel to a country that requires Covid vaccination proof. |
| Mr Drakeford said Wales would not adopt the "English test-to-release scheme" where people can leave quarantine after a negative test, because of evidence that a third of people who develop coronavirus linked to travel do so five days after arriving back in Wales. | |
| Mark Drakeford wants people to have a holiday in Wales in 2021 | Mark Drakeford wants people to have a holiday in Wales in 2021 |
| Is the Indian variant in Wales because of travel? | |
| The 26 cases of two coronavirus variants first identified in India that have been discovered are "almost entirely the result of international travel", the first minister said. | |
| Mr Drakeford said those infected were "people coming back to Wales from overseas" and all cases were being carefully monitored by local public health teams. | |
| "All the information I have had is that the individuals involved are following all the advice that they are required to follow, self-isolating and so on," he said. | |
| "And the advice I have is not that we need to be overly concerned about the position in Wales at the moment." | |
| LOOK-UP TOOL: How many cases in your area? | LOOK-UP TOOL: How many cases in your area? |
| SYMPTOMS: What are they and how to guard against them? | SYMPTOMS: What are they and how to guard against them? |
| YOUR QUESTIONS: We answer your queries | YOUR QUESTIONS: We answer your queries |
| TREATMENTS: What progress are we making to help people? | TREATMENTS: What progress are we making to help people? |
| EPIDEMIC v PANDEMIC: What's the difference? | EPIDEMIC v PANDEMIC: What's the difference? |