First Minister Mark Drakeford has announced ‘reinforcements’ to the current coronavirus regulations in Wales – in order to give us all some ‘headroom’ before Christmas.

In an announcement earlier today Mr Drakeford said that the cabinet had taken advice from Sage and was concentrating its efforts on keeping the population safe by looking once more at the rules governing places were people meet socially – but said that there would not be a reintroduction of the recent fire-break lockdown, instead the changes would be ‘targeted and focused’..

He has announced that cinemas, bowling alleys and other indoor entertainment venues will close and that there will be more, stringent regulations introduced to govern the hospitality industry, that will be announced on Monday.

The new restrictions will come into force next Friday, December 4.

He said:

“Here in Wales we need to use the coming weeks to reduce the spread of the virus and create more headroom before Christmas."

Paul Davies MS, the Leader of the Opposition in the Welsh Parliament, has responded to today’s announcement, saying: “This is going to be a real blow for countless hospitality businesses up and down the country, businesses that has suffered greatly over the last eight months.

“We now need to know the details from the Welsh Government because this will create an even more anxious and worrying time for businesses struggling to keep afloat.”

“As before, Welsh Conservatives are calling for targeted interventions, based on hyperlocal data, rather than blanket restrictions on all Wales.”

Plaid Cymru Shadow Minister for Transport, Helen Mary Jones MS said: “Making an announcement without making an announcement only creates more uncertainty for an already struggling sector.

"Any restrictions on hospitality must be met with adequate economic support that doesn’t repeat the chaos of the last phase of the Economic Resilience Fund and that businesses are given enough time to prepare for what is expected of them. It’s crucial we support both lives and livelihoods and that health and economic policy go hand in hand.

“These additional restrictions come as no surprise. The Labour Welsh Government came out of the firebreak too suddenly – we said so at the time. They should have gone for a longer firebreak and chose not to because of economics. It’s now crucial that they ensure mass testing is rolled out in high areas of infection, provide enough economic support for those who have to self-isolate and publish their vaccination plan for Wales.”