2. Statement by the First Minister: Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 2:33 pm on 29 April 2020.

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Photo of Delyth Jewell Delyth Jewell Plaid Cymru 2:33, 29 April 2020

First Minister, last Thursday your Government announced a change in policy relating to testing people moving from hospital back into care homes. Until the end of last week, care home residents were routinely moving between hospital and care homes without being tested, but that's been rectified now. But I've spoken to one care home manager who thinks it's very likely that the virus entered the care home through that route, and a request for a resident to be tested before leaving hospital was denied. That care home has since suffered a number of deaths that they suspect relate to COVID-19. But, First Minister, given all this and the fact that Office for National Statistics data suggests that deaths from COVID-19 in care homes are much higher than initially thought, what assurance can you give us that the Welsh Government's failure to test care home residents has not led to numerous outbreaks and deaths in care homes in Wales?