What are the latest coronavirus restrictions in Wales?

Wales has confirmed a two-week "firebreak" lockdown
April Roach @aprilroach2819 October 2020

More than three million people in Wales will be required to stay at home for two weeks as the country enters into a "firebreak" lockdown.

First Minister Mark Drakeford said the move needed to be "short and sharp" to curb the rising rates of coronavirus and prevent the NHS from becoming overwhelmed.

Here we take a look at what the latest restrictions will mean for people in Wales.

What are the latest restrictions in Wales?

For two weeks people in Wales must “stay at home”, harking back to the advice of the initial UK lockdown.

Mr Drakeford said the only exceptions will be critical workers and jobs where working from home is not possible.

All non-essential retail, leisure, hospitality and tourism businesses will close.

Community centres, libraries and recycling centres will also close, while places of worship will be shut except for funerals or wedding ceremonies.

Mr Drakeford said that the measures were necessary to prevent the NHS from being overwhelmed (BBC)

Childcare facilities will stay open, with primary and specialist schools reopening after the half-term break.

Secondary schools will also reopen after half-term but only for children in years seven and eight, though students taking exams will be able to attend for them.

Meanwhile, university students will have to stay in their university accommodation.

Members of different households have also been banned from gathering. However, the exception for social bubbles will remain.

When do the restrictions come into force?

The two-week "firebreak" lockdown will begin at 6pm on Friday, October 23 and last until Monday, November 9.

Coronavirus hits the UK - In pictures

1/61

What happens next?

The Welsh Government said a new set of national rules will be introduced after the lockdown period ends in November.

They will cover how people can meet as well as how the public sector and businesses operate.

How do the restrictions differ in England?

A new three-tier system of coronavirus restrictions came into force in England last Wednesday.

Nationwide restrictions apply in Tier 1, which means people can meet in a group of up to six people from multiple households either indoors or outdoors, while pubs, bars and restaurants must close at 10pm.

Under the Tier 2 restrictions, people cannot meet with anyone they do not live with indoors unless they are part of a support bubble, while the rule of six applies for socialising outside.

Areas in Tier 2 currently include Greater Manchester, Cheshire, Derbyshire, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Durham, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, Tees Valley, West Midlands, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire.

London, Essex, Elmbridge, Barrow-in-Furness, York, North East Derbyshire, Chesterfield and Erewash moved into Tier 2 on Saturday.

The most severe level of restrictions, Tier 3, means people cannot socialise with anyone outside their household in any indoor and many outdoor settings. Pubs and bars are forced to close unless they can operate as a restaurant.

Lancashire and the Liverpool City Region are the only two areas of England under Tier 3 restrictions, affecting 3.1 million people.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in