Part of 3. Topical Questions – in the Senedd at 3:11 pm on 29 January 2020.
Thank you, Minister. The threat we face from this new strain of coronavirus is of grave concern, and I am grateful that you have outlined the action your Government are taking to keep us safe. It is concerning that upwards of 5 million people are believed to have left Wuhan before the quarantine was put in place. Sadly, in the following weeks, we have seen this coronavirus outbreak spread, and the director of Public Health England has said that it is likely this deadly virus is already in the UK. We have to do all that we can to limit its impact on our already overstretched NHS. Minister, although we have no direct flights from China to Cardiff, both KLM and Qatar airlines offer flights. What assurances have you from the Dutch and Qatari Governments that they will screen all transit passengers?
Unfortunately, this coronavirus has a long incubation period, so the real scale of the threat will become more apparent in the coming weeks. Minister, will you commit to giving this Chamber and, by extension, the wider public, regular oral updates as the situation develops? Thank you.