The next item is a statement by the First Minister on coronavirus and I call on the First Minister to make the statement. Mark Drakeford. 

Thank you very much, Llywydd. Today's report to the Senedd will cover the most important developments in our response to coronavirus. As usual, I will summarise the latest evidence on the spread of the virus. I will provide an update on the test and trace arrangements that are crucial as we move out of lockdown. I will bring to the Senedd's attention the regulations that we will need to make in order to introduce quarantine arrangements that will apply to those entering the United Kingdom. I will also discuss the impact of the virus on children and young people in Wales. And, finally, I will refer to the horrific events in the United States last week.

Llywydd, as in previous weeks, I will focus my report on matters not to be covered in the statements that follow from the Minister for Economy, Transport and North Wales and the Minister for International Relations and the Welsh Language.

Llywydd, the number of new cases of the virus in Wales continues to fall, as does the number of admissions to hospital and to critical care. There were 42 new cases reported by Public Health Wales yesterday. There are now 40 patients in critical care beds in Wales suffering from coronavirus, down from a peak of 164 in April. The number of new admissions for coronavirus has fallen from over 1,000 a week, at the peak, to 710 last week. These trends are encouraging, and I once again thank people in Wales for the commitment and solidarity that they have shown over the past weeks and months.

Despite that, Llywydd, yesterday the Office for National Statistics reported that, in all settings, up to 29 May, there have been a total of 2,240 deaths involving coronavirus in Wales. The number of deaths reported yesterday by Public Health Wales was nine, continuing the downward trend. But each of those is an individual with a life that could have been led. Each one will have been greatly missed. And it remains imperative that we all continue to follow the rules to protect ourselves and others.

Llywydd, I reported last week on the decisions taken as part of the latest review of the regulations, to ease some of the restrictions currently in place. We will make further easements, as soon as it is safe to do so, but only when it is safe to do so.

We have taken these cautious steps supported by our test, trace and protect system, which came into effect last week. As I’ve said, the number of positive cases of coronavirus in Wales continues to fall. Last week the highest number on any one day was 82, the lowest, 35. These cases generated 651 people for follow-up by the contact tracing teams, and of those 651, 619 have already been successfully contacted and advised.

Our system in Wales is a partnership between Public Health Wales, local health boards and local authorities. Over 600 staff, experienced in working with the public, have been recruited and trained by local authorities and other public services. Not all will be undertaking contact tracing work as yet due to the low number of new positive cases, but the capacity is there to step up if needed, and careful arrangements have been made in our system to protect personal data and to guard against fraud. And all of that is important because this is a trust-based system, enabled by technology and staffed by local people. It will provide the essential infrastructure to help us prevent transmission of the virus and gradually reduce the restrictions on day-to-day life in Wales.

Llywydd, we have to be prepared for a potential upturn in transmission, because as the lockdown eases, so the number of personal contacts increases. In that context, we have reviewed the evidence on the role of face coverings, and the Minister for Health and Social Services reported on new advice yesterday, endorsing the use of non-medical face coverings on public transport.

The Minister also provided a written statement yesterday that set out that we are on track to complete the first phase of testing all residents and staff in care homes in Wales by the end of this week, and we will now test all care home workers each week for a further four-week period.

Llywydd, the UK Government’s plans for quarantine requirements at the border came into effect this week. Border security is a reserved matter, but because the quarantine arrangements are implemented through public health legislation, it was necessary for the Welsh Ministers to make parallel regulations for Wales. Where people notify an intention to quarantine at an address in Wales, they will be contacted by Public Health Wales.

Llywydd, in previous statements I have considered the impact of the virus on the work of the Welsh Government, on its budget and other areas. The legislative programme is no exception, with a sharp reduction in the capacity of the Government to bring forward our proposals, and challenges indeed for the legislature in discharging the responsibility to scrutinise those plans in current circumstances.

The Minister for Education's statement yesterday informed Ministers that, very reluctantly, the Government has concluded that it will not be practicable to proceed as planned with the tertiary education reform Bill. It will now be published as a draft Bill for consultation. I will make a statement next month on the Government’s legislative plans for the remainder of this Senedd term.

Llywydd, yesterday we received important evidence on how coronavirus is impacting the lives of children in Wales. This has been an extraordinary period for us all, but for children the coronavirus crisis will make up a significant proportion of their whole lives. Attending to their needs and experience is an important strand in our response to the emergency.

Over 23,700 children and young people aged between three and 18 shared their views through the 'Coronavirus and Me' survey. This survey is a partnership between the Welsh Government, the Children’s Commissioner for Wales, Children in Wales and the Youth Parliament. The survey underlined how much young people have been missing their family and friends during this period, and for young people in particular, it has underlined their anxieties about their education and worries about falling behind.

As our chief medical officer has regularly made clear, there is more than one form of harm from coronavirus. Children’s needs must be a real concern as we try to balance the benefits of protection from the virus against the harms caused by loss of education and social contact, and there's no doubt that those harms will impact most on those who are already disadvantaged. From the start, we set out to mitigate those harms by keeping schools open for children receiving free school meals, and children of key workers. But for many children, there has been no contact with school, and their experience of remote learning may have been mixed.

That is why, in considering the options for the remainder of this term, the Minister for Education has given priority to ensuring that all pupils will meet their teacher in small groups to support them with their learning and planning for the next stage. The Minister's statement last week confirmed that this is a phased return to school. It will start on 29 June and continue until the end of July, ensuring a full month of schooling in its new format for all pupils before the summer break.

Finally, Llywydd, the leader of Plaid Cymru raised the question of Black Lives Matter protests with me and I was grateful to him for doing so. The anger felt at the death of George Floyd has quite rightly cast a spotlight on the wider experience of black people in our society. We have as great a need as any here in Wales to confront our own history, to recognise the part played in it by black communities, and to address the systematic discrimination and discrimination faced still by black people today. Nobody's record on this is perfect: no political party; no organisation, public or private; and no Government. All I want to say to black citizens here in Wales today is that imperfect as the record has been, the Welsh Government is here to stand by you, to work with you, to learn from you as we recommit to making a real difference in the future. Llywydd, diolch yn fawr.

Leader of Plaid Cymru, Adam Price. 

First Minister, I warmly welcome the comments you made at the end of your statement and I would like to return to the issue of the implications for us in Wales of the appalling events in the United States. Now, who we commemorate from our past reflects our values as a society today. Would it be appropriate, therefore, in your view, First Minister, to conduct a Wales-wide review, as is happening now across London, in order to ensure that we are not seen to be in any way celebrating slavery, colonialism or racism in our national monuments or our local monuments?

I thank Adam Price once again for raising this important point. I agree entirely with this comments. It's important that we remember our past and the part that Wales played in the events of the past that we are thinking about today, but we don't want to celebrate those things. We want to educate and remember, but not celebrate, and that's why we're working with local authorities and others in Wales in order to consider whether there are things that are still being displayed at the moment that would be better placed in a museum, so that they are a part of our history and so that we don't forget that history, but neither should we be celebrating it, and we are still working with others across Wales to consider that issue.

The way we teach our history has the capacity to either reproduce the past or change the future. So, First Minister, in addition to the general commitment you gave in your statement, which is very welcome, I was wondering if you would be prepared to give two further specific commitments today.

The Welsh Government currently funds a woollen, maritime, slate and coal museum, even one for the Roman legion, and there is also a proposal separately for a military medicine museum in what was Tiger Bay. There is an obvious gap. So, would you commit, First Minister, to exploring the establishment of a national museum telling the history of the BAME communities in Wales and will you also commit to embedding anti-racism and the teaching of black and people of colour history, including, as you yourself have referenced, Wales's own role in colonialism and slavery, as core elements within the educational curriculum in every school in Wales? 

I thank Adam Price again. He's right to point to the wide range of museums that we have in Wales, including a new football museum as a result of an agreement between his party and the Government earlier in this Senedd term. I'm very happy to look at a museum of the sort he describes. I'd really want it to be a living museum. I've had the privilege on a number of occasions in recent times of helping award recognition to young people from the black community as part of Black History Month, and the message I try and convey to them in that event is that they are creating their history today. The history doesn't belong to the past; history is something we are all engaged in producing ourselves and that they have agency themselves as hugely talented and valued young black people here in Wales. So, I'm very happy to commit to looking at it, but I do very much want it to be a part of celebrating contemporary Wales, the contribution that black communities make, the way that they shape Wales into the future, as well as looking at their experience in shaping Wales in the past.

And as far as teaching in schools is concerned, Adam Price will be very aware of how recent events have shone a spotlight on this whole subject. I know that my colleague Kirsty Williams will be wanting to work again with those who have been advising us on the new curriculum, on the way that it is to be developed and delivered to make sure that we are capturing the lessons of the past few weeks. I think this is a matter for every school in Wales. Whatever the local make-up of a population might be, it is just as important for children, where black communities have been less present, to understand that history as it is for young people who are part of that community themselves.

The leader of the opposition, Paul Davies.

Diolch, Llywydd. First Minister, earlier this week you indicated that you were looking at easing some of the lockdown restrictions in Wales in your next review. The people of Wales will be looking for hope in that statement—hope that they can reunite their families, hope in relation to their businesses and hope that, as the number of new cases is falling, some of the freedoms that have been taken away in recent weeks will now be restored. I appreciate that you're still working with officials, but you have previously indicated in the past that hairdressers and others should start preparing for reopening. However, there are other sectors that are yet to hear anything from the Welsh Government, such as the property industry, the retail motor industry—and the list goes on.

Therefore, in preparation for your next announcement, can you confirm on what fundamental basis the Welsh Government may ease restrictions for some sectors, and what steps are you taking to ensure that that criteria is fairly tested against all sectors, so that Wales's economy can start to reopen a bit more in the coming weeks?

Well, Llywydd, I share that hope that people in Wales have that we will be in a position at the end of next week to further lift some of the restrictions we've all had to abide by over what is now nearly three months. How will we know whether it is possible to do so? Well, it will depend upon the level of circulation of the virus here in Wales, and there are a range of indications that we will be able to use to tell us whether or not we have headroom to be able to offer further amelioration of those restrictions. The R number will be one indication, but some of the things that I covered in my statement, Llywydd, will also be relevant.

So, to give you a different sort of yardstick, in answer to the leader the of the opposition's question, when we went into lockdown at the end of March, there were 400 new confirmed cases of coronavirus in Wales on any one day and that number was rising. Seven weeks ago, when we first began to lift some restrictions, that number had fallen to around a 100 a day, and was falling, and that helped to create the headroom to begin the process. As we go into this week, the figure is around 50 new confirmed cases every day, and that number continues to fall. So, your chances of meeting somebody, as you leave your own home, who is suffering from coronavirus is about an eighth of what it was when we went into lockdown. And that's just a way of trying to explain to people why it is possible to offer people additional freedoms.

But, the second thing that we will continue to have to emphasise to people is that, as they exercise those freedoms, they have to exercise them really carefully, because even if there are only 50 new confirmed cases a day, you have no way of knowing, as you leave your home, whether you are going to be in contact one of those 50 people. So, social distancing, hand hygiene, use of face coverings, and non-medical face coverings on public transport, all those are things that we must still use, even as we lift the lockdown, to go on making sure that we bear down of the virus, we create more headroom, so, at the end of another three week period, there are further things that we would be able to do to help resume life as we were more used to it before the virus began.

Well, I hope, First Minister, that as the Welsh Government considers the next major changes to its COVID-19 policies, it will work constructively will opposition parties. And it might be helpful in the future if you could consult opposition politicians before making some of these decisions so that the people of Wales can be sure that we, as politicians, are working together where we can in the public interest.

Now, First Minister, last weekend you made it clear that Wales will remain largely shut over the summer, with visitors likely to be restricted to staying in cottages and self-catering flats. As I'm sure you can imagine, your comments were met with some anger and frustration by some tourism operators across the country, who, understandably, fear that this could lead to the collapse of the Welsh tourism sector. Now, I appreciate that opening up the sector has to be done in a safe and sustainable manner, but, as our tourism businesses watch their counterparts across the UK consider ways in which they can partially reopen tourist facilities, many operators feel as though they're being left behind with no hope for their businesses in the future. So, will you and your Government take the opportunity today to spell out exactly what the Welsh Government's current plans are for the tourism industry here in Wales? And can you also tell us what discussions you've had with representatives of the tourism industry to ascertain how your Government can better support them throughout this pandemic? And will you commit to providing further support to tourism operators across Wales until they can reopen, to ensure their viability for the future?

Well, Llywydd, let me say that the future of the tourism industry is very much in my thoughts and in the work that we do within the Welsh Government. I absolutely appreciate what an enormous impact the virus has had on that sector here in Wales. I wanted to give an indication that there is some hope for that sector, too, and that there are some ways in which we might yet be able to resume some tourism activity during the current season, but it will have to be, as Paul Davies has rightly said, with safety at the forefront of our thinking. We have very regular contact with tourism organisations and interests in Wales. I had a meeting only yesterday with the Minister responsible, with senior officials here, reporting on those conversations and thinking ahead to what we might be able to offer in terms of lifting the lockdown. If it is possible, then, beginning with self-contained accommodation, where people are not sharing kitchens and toilets and showers and so on, seems to be a sensible and safe way of thinking about how we can resume activity in the tourism industry.

The other key factor—and Mr Davies will be very well aware of this, I know, from his local representation—is that it has to be done with community consent. He will know the level of anxiety there has been in parts of south-west and north-west Wales during the pandemic, of people coming into those areas from places where the virus has been in more virulent circulation, and of the risk of the virus coming into places where it's been in low circulation and the impact that that could have on local services and local lives. So, there's a job of work for the industry to do, as well, in having those conversations with local populations—many of those people work in the tourism sector themselves—so that as we move, if we are able to, to allow tourism to resume in Wales, people who travel to those communities can be sure that they would be welcome, and that the industry will once again be demonstrating to people everything that Wales has to offer. 

First Minister, we no longer have First Minister's questions and, instead, I respond once again remotely to your statement. The Westminster Parliament has returned, but elected Members aren't allowed to attend the Senedd, yet on Saturday a mass of protesters were allowed to demonstrate at the Senedd, in sight of where your health Minister had his takeaway family picnic. I asked you then if you'd read Animal Farm, as it seemed some were more equal than others. This week, as others were fined for travelling a bit more than 5 miles to see family, at least one Labour Member joined the protest in Bute park. Why should others obey the lockdown if Labour Members who impose it break it? Mandy Jones from my group rightly observed, if the second protest goes ahead,

'This is a slap in the face to those who have sacrificed so much in order to defeat the virus.'

When asked your view on the protests, did you take the opportunity to condemn their illegality? Did you warn protestors they could be fined or say you would support the police in issuing such fines? No. You chose instead to condemn the elected Member who sought to uphold the law. Of course, the mass protest—organised, incidentally, Llywydd, by a group that wants to dismantle capitalism and defund the police—is a slap in the face to many who have sacrificed so much in order to defeat the virus. 

First Minister, will you apologise to Mandy Jones for your disgraceful slur in attempting to link that turn of phrase to a police officer seemingly killing a man by kneeling on his neck for eight and a half minutes? Why won't you enforce your rules without fear or favour? Is it because you support the protests, or is it because you are afraid that you will be 'cancelled' by the protestors, as Jenny Rathbone and Ali Ahmed were on Saturday when they respectively spoke up for other minority groups and said, 'All lives matter'? First Minister as you won't enforce your laws fairly, isn't it time we repealed them?

Llywydd, how this Parliament chooses to sit is not a matter for me. If this Parliament decides that it wants to resume meeting partly or wholly in person, then I will appear in front of the Senedd to answer questions. It's entirely a matter for you, not a matter for me.

As to the point the Member made about lawmakers, let me be clear: my view has always been that you cannot make the law and break the law, and that goes for us all, every single Member, in my view. We have the enormous privilege of making decisions that we then ask other people to abide by. We cannot make those decisions, ask them to abide by them and not abide by them ourselves, and that goes for us all. 

Llywydd, I very much support the police in the way that they have responded to demonstrations. It's not for me to instruct them who have to make those decisions on the front line as to how they should respond to the circumstances unfolding in front of them. I think police in Wales have responded in a constructive way to the difficult position they have faced, and I want to support them in the actions they have taken. 

As for demonstrators, I simply say again that I understand and share the anger that they feel and their need to make their views known, but there are other and better ways to do that in the current circumstances. People should not gather when they are in close proximity with one another and in violation of the rules that we have set down. There are many other ways in which views can be known and need to be known and ought to be known, and I urge people in Wales who feel so strongly, as I do myself, to make those views known in ways that do not put themselves and others at risk.

For the avoidance of any doubt, this Parliament is sitting. David Rees.

Diolch, Llywydd. First Minister, we've literally received a notification from Albert Heaney within minutes of the guidance that may be changing for care homes and visits to care homes. I've received constituents' concerns regarding the ability to visit relatives in care homes who may be suffering with dementia. There are some excellent examples, Sŵn-y-Môr in Aberavon actually uses video contacting, video on FaceTime. They'll go around every resident to ensure that every member of their family has a chance to see them. That's not possible in all care homes.

Now, the letter that's just come out gives an indication that they're seeking comments from the public, and guidance will be published in coming weeks, but your review is scheduled for next week. Can you give us an indication as to whether there will be opportunities for care homes that are COVID-free to actually allow visits from families, particularly to members who have dementia, who see a friendly family face as crucial to their mental well-being? Is that part of your thinking on that guidance?

Llywydd, I thank David Rees for that. Just to say again, I hugely appreciate the human cost that there is for families and for residents in not being able to see one another at times in their lives where that human contact means so much to them.

But Mr Rees referred to care homes in Wales where there is no COVID in circulation, and three quarters of all the care homes in Wales have not reported a single confirmed case. But there are only two ways, really, in which coronavirus could get into a home where there is no coronavirus at the moment. One is it is brought in by a member of staff, and the second is that it is brought in by a visitor. So, the rules that we have had in place are absolutely there to protect care home residents from the devastating effect that coronavirus can have in a home that has elderly people with underlying health conditions living in close proximity to one another. Week after week, Llywydd, in these sessions, we have had to stare at those very, very sobering figures of the number of people who have died in care homes in Wales.

So, Mr Heaney's letter, which went out on 5 June, does advise care homes about how they can do more to allow visits from family and friends to care home residents in circumstances that minimise that risk. Care homes are able to do that under the current regulations; it doesn't require a change in regulations to be able to do the additional things that Albert Heaney is advising.

As David Rees said, there are many, many care homes in Wales that are already doing hugely imaginative things to try and bridge the gap between what was possible before and what has been possible during the pandemic. We have a group working on that further guidance. It meets again tomorrow. We want to be able to do more to allow families to have contact with people in care homes, but we can only judge it against the real risk, the risk we have seen from the number of deaths that have taken place, of what the virus does if it does get into a care home where, up until now, all those efforts have succeeded in keeping it at bay.

First Minister, the calls to protect people's right to breathe clean air have clearly intensified during recent months, and I'm sure you'll share my concern that the Hafod landfill site near Wrexham caught fire a fortnight ago. Thick black plumes of smoke passed over the large neighbouring communities, communities, by the way, of course, who'd fought a vigorous campaign some years ago to prevent waste being dumped there. Now, as with the recent fire at nearby Kronospan, mobile air-quality monitoring equipment had to be moved in from Swansea, and that took days to arrive. Arguably, the worst of the damage had already been done, but within two hours of its arrival, the equipment actually detected particulates above the acceptable levels, and residents were told to stay indoors with windows shut for three days. We know, of course, that burning plastics and other wastes creates dioxins and furans, chemicals that can accumulate in the food chain, and, of course, they can cause cancer as well. 

Now, hundreds of people have signed the petition saying that enough is enough, and they want to see the Hafod tip close. So, will you, as First Minister, ensure that an independent inquiry is held into the cause of the fire, and that the Hafod landfill site is closed, or at least is closed until the inquiry is concluded? And will the Government also now ensure that we have mobile air quality monitoring equipment located here in north Wales so that we don't have to wait days on end for it to arrive for any future incidents, by which time, of course, most of the damage has already been done?

Well, Llywydd, there are authorities that have responsibilities in this area—the local authority, the fire authority; they will be providing reports on the events to which Llyr Gruffydd has referred, and the Welsh Government will consider those reports and then decide what further action may be needed. I take the point he made in his final sentence, about the availability of mobile air quality equipment, and I will look to see whether there is anything that can be done to improve that position.

How do you respond to yesterday's statement by the British Association of Private Dentistry in Wales, which has grown from nought to 400 members in under a week, that many patients are suffering needlessly, and that urgent action to deliver routine dentistry under interim standard operating procedures and personal protective equipment is required to allow the Welsh population the same care as in England, but more importantly, around the world, and that many dental practices will not otherwise survive?

And how do you respond to the following, which Wrexham Glyndŵr University has asked me to raise here? With substantial numbers of staff and students from across the nearby border with England, they're concerned about the current divergence at this early stage of emerging from lockdown, and the confusion this may cause if it persists into later stages. How will they be able to communicate clearly to staff and students who may be anxious about being in breach?

Llywydd, I respond to the first group by referring them to the advice of the Chief Dental Officer for Wales, who is the person best equipped—a good deal better equipped than the Member will be—to provide people with expert advice in the dental field, and the continuing discussions that she will have with the profession in Wales. That's how decisions should be made—by proper professional discussion and professional leadership, and I refer them to the leader of their profession here in Wales. 

As to the points made by staff at Glyndŵr university, I would be very pleased to recruit and co-opt them into the efforts that we make as a Welsh Government to make clear what the rules are here in Wales, and to put right any confusion caused by his colleagues across our border. 

First Minister, can I welcome the fact that, at the last review of the COVID regulations, the Welsh Government were able to ensure that apprentices can return to college in order to complete their practical studies, and therefore complete their qualifications? That's great news for those young people, and we hope, of course, that it will benefit the economy, too. However, I do fear the scale of problems that could face young people in the months ahead. In my own constituency, the youth unemployment claimant count is currently running at about 11 per cent. So, do you agree that, in seeking to address this in the longer term, we should scale up on existing successes like the Aspire programme at Merthyr college, and perhaps look to see if this apprenticeship model could be applied in more sectors and beyond STEM students, benefitting young people and local employers in a wider variety of settings?

Llywydd, I thank Dawn Bowden for that, and we were very glad to be able to support the FE sector in their wish to enable young people with practical examinations to complete those so that they weren't disadvantaged compared to young people receiving more conventional academic qualifications who'd already been catered for here in Wales.

I thank Dawn Bowden for drawing attention to the success of the Aspire scheme. As she will know, it's an example of a shared apprenticeship scheme where young people get an opportunity to gain experience in a variety of different settings, and where small employers, in particular, who may not have the capacity to take on a whole apprentice full time, are still able to have the benefit of an apprentice working as part of their workforce. And, Llywydd, Dawn's suggestion was to build on success and to spread it further. She will know that the Aspire scheme began in Blaenau Gwent where we put 80 young people working as part of the Aspire scheme there, and was then moved to take place in Merthyr as well. And I think that's a very good practical example of exactly the point Dawn Bowden was making; it was a success, we're doing more of it, and we've extended the funding for it in Merthyr and Blaenau Gwent for another 12 months.

As we move into the difficult days ahead where unemployment is going to be increasing, and the impact we know that that has on young people's lives, then building on the things that we've done already and know can succeed will be a very, very important part of our armoury. 

A week ago, I was calling on the Welsh Government to make a recommendation that people should wear a face mask in certain circumstances, and may I say that I am pleased that the Government has now taken action on that. But I wanted to pursue issues of dentistry in COVID-19. I've had a number of dentists contacting me following an announcement on how dental services are to be restored in Wales. One was very supportive of the fact that that was going to be very gradual, and emphasised the very real risk of infection in a dental situation, and said that England, in their recent announcement on dental services, had caught up with Wales in terms of the re-introduction of certain services already provided here.

But I have to say that most of those dentists were concerned—concerned that Wales was moving far more slowly in re-introducing services than most other nations, certainly looking throughout Europe; concern that failure to provide fundamental services like fillings meant that crucial preventative services couldn't happen, and the detrimental impact that that could have on the dental health of the population. Others emphasised that dental services are well used to dealing with cross-infection—

A question please, Rhun ap Iorwerth. 

I will come to my question immediately.

[Continues.]—and they also said that there's been an opportunity taken to change dental contracts, and I don't think that this is the right time to do this. So, I ask the First Minister, does he hear those concerns and is he willing to work with the profession to find an alternative way forward? 

If I could say at the outset, Llywydd, of course we as a Government are eager to see more services being provided in primary care, and that is true of dentistry, of course it is. But we must do it in a way in which we can care for those working in dentistry, and for their patients too. I know that Rhun ap Iorwerth will be aware, having heard from people in the sector, that there are challenges in that sector.  

It's quite impossible to practice dentistry at a 2m distance, and the use of aerosols, which is an intrinsic part of dental practice, poses particular risks when it comes to this virus. So, we are keen, of course, to see dentistry resume, as with other primary care services, but it's got to be done in a way that protects the health of workers and of patients. That's what the advice of the chief dental officer was designed to deliver in a phased resumption of dental practice. She remains in close conversation with the profession. If it is safe to do more more quickly, that is exactly what we would want to see. But the word 'safe' has to mean something, and it has to mean something that we can all rely on, otherwise patients won't come. That's why it's in the interest of the profession to make sure that they can confidently communicate to patients that the services they will be offering have been approved by the leaders of their profession as being ones that are now safe to resume. 

The chair of Care Forum Wales has publicly criticised Public Health Wales for not engaging with care professionals before implementing the new 28-day COVID-free policy restrictions. This could potentially close half of the care homes in Wales due to the financial implications of this and the voids. Could you explain, First Minister, why those in our care sector were not consulted prior to the issuing of this letter? Also, not all COVID-19 test results are being received in the vital 48-hour window; some are taking up to three days. What effect will this have on the new policy of weekly care home testing? As of 1 June, only 22 of 68 homes had been mass tested locally. So, how can we be confident that all homes now will reach that milestone of mass testing, and more so, how are you going to carry out the retesting weekly in our care homes?

And, finally, will you urgently review the impact of 1,400 discharges to care homes in March and April, and the effect that that has on our infection rates, given that some of those were not tested before they left hospital? Diolch yn fawr. 

Well, Llywydd, the answer to the Member's first question is to be found in her final question. The reason that we are proposing that someone who has tested positive should not be discharged to a care home for 28 days is precisely because of the concerns raised by the sector of people earlier in the progress of the pandemic being released from hospital to a care home and having a risk of bringing coronavirus with them. Our latest position is designed to make sure that that does not happen. Now, you can't have it both ways here. Either you don't want people with coronavirus to be in care homes or you don't. If you don't, then the 28-day rule is designed to deliver on that objective. And we remain in close conversation with the sector all the time. 

Llywydd, we are confident that we will have completed our testing of care home residents and of care home staff by 12 June. It has been a most enormous effort. There have been instances in Wales where we've had to work very hard to persuade care homes of the advantage of this policy. And I understand that there will be care homes that are anxious about outsiders coming into the home because of the risk of the virus coming with them. But we've had quite a number of care homes where a lot of conversation has had to be had in order to allow the testing to take place, and that has delayed the testing in quite a number of instances. I see the Member shaking her head at me. I'm simply telling her the facts. I don't know what there is to disagree with them; that is simply a matter that is reported to us by health boards and testers, that not all care homes are equally receptive, and not all care home residents are willing to be tested. And that is a right that they have. It is not a compulsory system. It is an offer. And not all care home residents have wanted to take that offer up, and we have to respect that too. 

We are confident that we can now test every care home worker weekly for four weeks, and we will see what we learn from that, and then we will make a decision about a proportionate approach to testing in this sector once that four-week period is over. 

Good morning, First Minister. Last night, I was one of many people who took part in a UK-wide discussion on the Co-operative Party's new report 'Owning the Future', about how we can rebuild co-operatively after coronavirus. And the report found that only one in 10 people feel that the UK-wide economy before coronavirus prioritised sharing wealth fairly, and that seven out of 10 people think that the coronavirus recovery should give communities more of a say in how businesses and the economy are run. And, again, seven out of 10 want to keep that renewed sense of community that we found during the crisis. 

Now, in Wales, we're fortunate, we've long had a Government that understands and supports co-operative principles, and has acted upon these, year after year after year. But all of us in the Welsh Labour and Co-operative group of Members of the Senedd would ask you, First Minister: will you continue to put those co-operative principles into action, as we rebuild from coronavirus, to grow our collective stake in owning our own future in Wales, as well as right across the UK?

Llywydd, can I thank Huw Irranca-Davies for that question, drawing attention to the very important 'Owning the Future' report, which I've enjoyed reading? And it has that outstanding merit of the co-operative movement, which is that it has a whole series of practical proposals at the end—it is not just a report that analyses the problem; it's a report that then gives you seven, as it happens in this case, intensely practical ways in which you can help to shape the future, as the report suggests. And I'm not in the least surprised at that finding in the report, because people in Wales have done so much co-operatively together over the past three months that it's no wonder that they want a greater collective and co-operative approach to shaping that future. And the things we've done as a Government over the years have always seemed to me to be with the grain of the way that people in Wales think about these matters. So, I'm absolutely happy to recommit to continuing to do that over the rest of this Assembly term, as we begin to move out of, and hopefully beyond, the pandemic. I'm looking forward very much to being part myself of the Wales Co-op Party annual conference, held virtually over the coming weekend, and an opportunity to discuss there practical ways in which we can work together to shape a future in which we all have a stake and the contributions of all Welsh citizens are properly valued and celebrated.

Neil Hamilton. Neil Hamilton?

I—

Carry on. I'll come back to you. Lynne Neagle.

Thank you, Llywydd. First Minister, I entirely share your concerns, expressed in your statement, about the impact of COVID on children and young people. But as I only have a minute today, I wanted to use my time to ask about another group who are all too often voiceless. Figures released last week by the Office for National Statistics have shown a staggering 83 per cent increase in deaths from dementia, not COVID, in April. And the Alzheimer's Society has warned that the pandemic is taking a devastating toll on those living with dementia. Many of us in this Assembly are proud to be dementia friends, and we know from that how vital human contact is to those living with dementia, who have to live in the moment much of the time.

Now, you've talked many times about the need to balance mental health with physical health considerations—you've said it again now in response to David Rees. But can I ask how you've specifically taken into account the devastating impact of isolation and separation from loved ones on those living with dementia in the decisions you've taken? And I'd also like to ask you for your firm commitment today that you will urgently look at the numbers of deaths of those living with dementia, and the associated Alzheimer's research, and for your commitment that you will issue a further written statement, detailing what further actions the Welsh Government will take to mitigate the impact of COVID on those living with dementia. Thank you.

Llywydd, can I thank Lynne Neagle for that important question, in a very complex and challenging area? The visits that we've been able to talk about in care homes, and set out in Mr Heaney's letter, require social distancing to be maintained. And as Lynne Neagle will know, that can be particularly difficult to explain to people, who, as she said, live in the moment and where physical contact is often very much part of the way in which they gain comfort from people who come to see them. And yet we know that that physical contact could pose such a significant risk to them and then to other people living in that same setting.

So, these are very complex matters. The ONS figures are very concerning and we will certainly be trying to make sense of them here in Wales. In doing so, we will rely, I'm sure, on the advice of our dementia oversight of implementation and impact group, which comprises of people looking after people with dementia—the lived experience of that—the Alzheimer's Society, and our own health and social care organisations. It's due to meet in the next couple of weeks. It will be looking at that report, at what the Alzheimer's Society itself has said, as well as the ONS, and will be giving us further advice. And as we are able to use that advice to advise others, then I will certainly make sure that that is properly communicated to Assembly Members.

Two issues, if I may, First Minister. Firstly, I wonder if the Welsh Government could look again at this 5-mile travel rule and provide guidance on this. I know you've said previously that it is guidance and discretionary for people on how far they do travel, but I've got many constituents who are still unclear and very concerned that they can't travel to see family and friends. So, could we have clarity on that?

Secondly, I asked the finance Minister recently if there'd been any discussions about the future raising of taxes in Wales to deal with COVID recovery. I know she said that that was not an attractive thing to do, but I wondered if there had been any discussions. And as we come out of lockdown, could the Welsh Government perhaps look overseas at examples of some other countries in terms of getting the economy moving and using the tax system to do that? In New Zealand, for instance, they've introduced a tax loss carry-back regime to help businesses offset current tax losses against previous years. Perhaps that's something that you and the UK Government could discuss. They're also introducing discretionary deductions for non-domestic buildings to try and support businesses and get the economy moving. So, I think the Welsh Government does have a number of tools in the toolbox, as you and your predecessor have said before. So, could you look at ways to use the tax system to really kick-start the economy and try to get Wales moving again?

Llywydd, I thank Nick Ramsay for both of those questions. Let me just say, once again, it is not helpful to refer to the 5-mile limit as a rule—it is not a rule. If it was a rule, it would be in regulations—it's not in regulations. It is guidance to give people a sense of what the regulation that requires people to stay local might mean in their circumstances. And the best advice is just to say to people that they're to use the 5-mile limit as a rule of thumb. They're to interpret it sensibly and soberly in their own circumstances, but there are many, many different geographies in Wales, and so long as they can demonstrate that they are acting in a way that can be defended, then they will have brought themselves within the 'stay local' rule.

There are no plans for tax erasing by the Welsh Government during the current financial year. I'm interested to hear the examples that Nick Ramsay referred to. We've tended to gather a lot of information from countries elsewhere about how they are lifting lockdown regulations and the impact that that's having in the health area. It's a useful point that the Member makes about learning from places elsewhere as they use different levers to assist the economy, as the economy recovers from the impacts of coronavirus as well.

I think most of the examples that Nick Ramsay referred to would be for the UK Government to take forward. And currently, of course, in the non-domestic-rates context, a great deal of help has already been provided in the current financial year so that businesses don't face those obligations at a time when their ability to raise revenue is at a low ebb. But I think the general point, and it's an important point, is: just as we learn from the experience of other countries in the health aspects of the coronavirus crisis, it's important we learn from them in the economy recovery as well, and we will certainly aim to do that as a Government in Wales. 

Neil Hamilton. Wait one second for your microphone to come on. Can I have Neil Hamilton's microphone switched on? Okay, we're still struggling on that one. I will call you, Neil Hamilton, if we manage to get the microphone switched on. I'll go to Alun Davies. 

Thank you very much, and I'm grateful, Presiding Officer, to the First Minister for the clarity of his statement this morning. I think the clarity with which he's spoken is something of a comparison with the continuing chaos that we're seeing across the border in England, where we see promises made, promises broken. We're seeing poor leadership and collapsing public support in the policies being pursued by the UK Government, and the horrific mortality rates that we're seeing across the border are, I think, the main reason for that, as well as the inability of the UK Government to speak clearly to the needs of their population. 

I'm interested, First Minister, in the way that you are approaching future policy and the approach that you are taking over these coming months. You've spoken already about the decisions that you will be taking in the next week or so, at the next review, but, in the same way as Nick Ramsay spoke about international examples, I would like to understand the sorts of international examples you are looking at and considering in terms of how you approach a continuing lockdown.

Now, we've heard some siren voices and sometimes strident voices from Conservatives and elsewhere saying that you should just follow the disaster in England, but nobody wants that. People in Blaenau Gwent don't want that. What they want is for you to consider their needs, to put people before profit, and they want you to consider their families and their communities. So, I'd be grateful, First Minister, if you could outline to us the approach you're taking, how you're using international examples to inform that approach, and what you expect to be able to do, as we move forward through these summer months. 

Llywydd, I thank Alun Davies. I'll try very briefly to just offer a few strands in the way we are trying to do what he says. Our approach in Wales has been to try to work out how a policy could be implemented and then to announce the policy, not to announce the policy first and then worry about how you can make it happen afterwards. And we have seen, across our border, where that leads you to in their education travails of this week. 

We are determined to try to make sure that we take into account the messages we learn from people in Wales as we make our decisions. That's why, at the end of the last three-week review, we used the headroom we had to deal with the human heartbreak of not being able to meet people from another household who are important to you. That came directly from the messages that we were hearing from Senedd Members, but also directly from people themselves, and making sure that people's views and their preferences are plugged in is part of the way we will make those decisions. 

I think—[Inaudible.]—the decisions that we've got to make immediately and how we can plan over the period from now to the autumn, and then there is the work that Jeremy Miles is leading about longer term recovery. In both of those things, evidence from other places in the world is really important to us. We're learning a lot about the way lockdown is being lifted elsewhere and the risks that are then inevitably run of the R number rising and the virus being in circulation again. And I know that Alun Davies will have read of those examples in other parts of the world, just as we learn from places that have taken steps that don't result in that outcome. And then, in the way that Nick Ramsay said, we also need to learn the lessons of elsewhere about economic recovery, about ways in which we can create a fair economy of the future, in which we reward those people who do the work that we really depend upon, rather than those people who, in the way that we've seen over the last decade, have been able to use their advantages to create still more advantages, while leaving the rest of us behind.

Members of the cross-party group on preventing child sexual abuse are concerned about children subject to sexual abuse during lockdown—two particular concerns about where a child is locked down and with the perpetrator, as well as an increase in online abuse as children spend more time online and abusers exploit this opportunity. All of this is compounded by the fact that children on child protection plans for child sexual abuse are under-represented, so were more likely to be invisible before the pandemic.

Can the Welsh Government ensure that the public and professionals know that the services there to support children and young people are still open for business? Helplines remain open, specialist services can, where safe and appropriate, support children and young people virtually, and the sexual assault referral centres are open and continuing to take self- and professional referrals. And what more can the Welsh Government do to shine a light on this now and as we move into different stages of lockdown in the future?

Llywydd, can I endorse the central message that Jayne Bryant passed there, that the services that are there to protect children in these circumstances are there and are open and can be used? They may be operating in different ways to make sure that people are safe, but they are there and they are operating. And if you have concerns, and need those concerns to be raised, please don't think that, because of the pandemic, there aren't ways for you to do it.

The good news is that safeguarding referrals to those services, which were suppressed in the 'stay home' part of the lockdown experience, have recovered steadily in recent weeks, and they're now more or less back to the levels you would have expected in times when COVID-19 wasn't part of our experience. So, I think we can take a bit of heart from that that the public's willingness and ability to report concerns has returned to the levels we would have seen previously.

Reopening schools for all pupils to have a chance to speak to adults outside the home—trusted individuals in their teachers—is another very important part of all of this, and one of the reasons why we were keen to make the decision that we did. We know that, where schools have been open, then vulnerable young people have been more likely to go to that school if that school is their own school than if they're being asked to go to a school with which they are not familiar—a journey they don't know, teachers they haven't met. By reopening all schools, then those vulnerable children will be able to go to a place that they know already, are more likely to feel confident talking to people who are familiar to them, and, if there are concerns that need to be pursued, then the services are there now to make sure that that can happen.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development is forecasting today that Britain will suffer the worst economic damage of any country in the developed world as a result of our draconian lockdown. We're forecast to see an 11.5 per cent fall in our national income for this year. That compares with 6.5 per cent in Sweden, which has followed a completely different road. We're taking an economic sledgehammer to crack a health crisis nut, because the death rate in this country from coronavirus is 602 per million, whereas in Sweden it's only two thirds of that, at 467 per million. So, we see, in Britain, a wholly disproportionate response to the health crisis.

Meanwhile, does he understand—the First Minister understand—that hard-working and law-abiding citizens wonder why they're being kept locked down, even can't go to church, even for private prayer, because such events are banned, meanwhile left-wing hooligans are allowed to run riot in the streets, desecrating war memorials, defacing and destroying public monuments, and that the response of the Government in these two cases seems to be a massive contrast and undermines the message that the Government wants to convey?   

Well, Llywydd, I disagree with the Member. As he knows, I had the very sad responsibility in my opening statement to refer to the 2,240 people who have so far lost their lives in Wales. I don't regard that as a 'nut'; I think that is demeaning to those people and to those families and to those who carry on having that experience every day and every week in Wales. So, I don't apologise for a single moment for the actions we have taken to prevent even further deaths from coronavirus. I don't dismiss for a single moment the economic damage that is being done and I'll need to attend to that properly, but I don't agree with him. I've heard him say it before—he wants to create some sort of division between what is right for people's health and what is right for the economy. What is right for the economy is to make sure that we come out of coronavirus in a cautious and careful way that does not plunge us back into a second wave with a further massive lockdown and everything that that would mean for the economy. Our way of responding to the health crisis is the best way to safeguard our economy from the enormous impact that coronavirus is having here in Wales, as it is right around the world.

Let me just respond to one further point, that of faith communities. We raised the matter on 29 April in the faith communities forum, with leaders of faith communities in Wales, about the reopening of venues for private prayer. At that point, the firm advice from leaders of those communities was that it wasn't practical for them to be able to reopen those venues in a way that is safe. I attended the last meeting of the faith communities forum last week. An enormous amount of work has gone on by those communities to put themselves in a position where they could now potentially reopen venues for private prayer. I was very impressed by all the practical things that they had thought about and were putting into place and we will consider that very seriously as we move to the end of the current three-week cycle.

Finally, Jack Sargeant. Where did Jack Sargeant go? He was there when I called him, and he's disappeared off my screen and is not to be heard. Therefore, I'll call Mick Antoniw as the final speaker. 

First Minister, across all parties, we very much welcomed some weeks ago now the £500 additional payment to be made to our front-line care workers in recognition of the extra contribution and the really important contribution they're making during this coronavirus pandemic. This was very much at the expense of £32 million of Welsh Government money for 64,000 of those workers.

I wonder if you could perhaps update us now as to two things: firstly, when those workers can expect to receive those payments, but, secondly, in respect of the issue of the tax and national insurance that would be chargeable to it. I know that you reported previously that representations had been made to the UK Government to waive the tax and national insurance because of the exceptional circumstances. I think across all parties we would see it as offensive if the UK Government were to have a financial windfall on the backs of our front-line care workers. Could you update us as to what stage the representations are with the UK Government with regard to waiving these deductions from the money that is rightly due to our front-line care workers? 

I thank Mick Antoniw for that question. I was very pleased last week, Llywydd, to be able to provide further details of how the scheme is to work and to be able to extend it to further groups of workers. We expect first payments to be made in this month and to continue into next month.

As far as the tax and national insurance position is concerned, let me just echo what Mick Antoniw said, Llywydd: we're not asking the UK Government for a penny towards the £32 million that we have been able to find for this purpose. We're not asking them to pay for it. All we're asking them to do is not to take money away from those workers who we intend to benefit from the scheme. So, there should be no Treasury windfall. We were discouraged by the letter we received on 2 June from the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, but that letter did contain an offer for officials to continue to work together on the proposition, and on Friday of last week, following what was reported to me as a constructive meeting, our officials did submit a technical paper to HMRC, presenting the arguments we make as to why these payments should not and need not be taxable. So, we will await their response, which we hope will come as soon as possible. We're not at the end of this discussion yet and we will continue as vigorously as we can to make the case that the money that is being provided by Welsh people to those people that we have relied on for such an enormous effort during the coronavirus crisis should not result in a windfall to the Treasury.

As he's now back and as he's our youngest Member, I finally call Jack Sargeant.

Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd, and apologies for the earlier interruption. First Minister, I've been working with a number of businesses who have been refused insurance payments despite having paid for business interruption insurance. They are told that because coronavirus is not previously a specified disease, they cannot claim. Most reasonable people, like I'm sure all the Members of the Senedd are, would point out that COVID-19 has only existed since late last year, so it is very unlikely to be a specified disease. I don't feel this is good enough, First Minister. Large insurers who have been receiving payments from small businesses for a number of years are putting small businesses in all of our communities in real jeopardy. First Minister, will the Welsh Government investigate such cases as a matter of urgency?

Llywydd, may I thank Jack Sargeant for that important point? He will not be surprised to learn that we've had a volume of correspondence on this matter from firms who believed that in good faith they had taken out insurance that would cover them in these circumstances, only to be told that now it doesn't, and we've been in correspondence as Ministers with the ABI—the Association of British Insurers—on this matter. Jack Sargeant will know that the regulator has decided to take a test case through the law courts to resolve this very specific point that he has raised. How could insurance policies have been designed to cover an eventuality that nobody had identified, and can that really be cited as an exemption that means the payments can't be made? It's a stand-off between the industry and those of us who believe that they should have acted otherwise, and it will now be for the law courts to resolve it.

I thank the First Minister.