15. Statement by the Minister for Health and Social Services: Update on Local Coronavirus Restrictions

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 6:35 pm on 29 September 2020.

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Photo of Vaughan Gething Vaughan Gething Labour 6:35, 29 September 2020

And on his point about these are really not local measures, the Member is quite simply wrong. These are local restrictions within a local authority area. That is where the measures apply; that is where the point about the reasonable excuse and the travel measures apply. It is the case that if local authorities move at different rates and different paces in terms of their recovery and their suppression of the virus, then we will make choices about that local authority. We won't, for the sake of argument, hold up if progress is made in Caerphilly and Newport, and say that no progress can be made on restoring some of the freedoms we have had to suspend to protect people from harm from coronavirus until other parts of south Wales have made progress too. So, that simply isn't a reasonable measure at all.

In terms of the older persons' commissioner's regular view about the importance of care home visits, we take on board the comments the older persons' commissioner made previously, and the approach of this Government in protecting people from harm, and the concern that action wasn't taken early enough to protect care home residents from the potential harm that community transmission could cause within that area. We produced Welsh Government guidance last week that the Deputy Minister, Julie Morgan, issued. Now, that sets out some assistance for decision making, but these are ultimately local authority choices about whether to end visits within their local authority area for their direct provision, and their direct relationship with providers who they commission care from. So, it's a matter for local authorities, taking account of the guidance we have provided, the regular conversations that take place between the Government and social service directors, and, indeed, the note that the older persons' commissioner, which I think was helpfully provided at the start of this week.

On student returns, the education Minister has set out much of the information, as did the First Minister earlier. He'll be aware that there are measures that each university has in place, about not just teaching and learning, but how to undertake control measures. And, more than that, if we do see spikes in infection rates, we're looking to have a conversation that takes account of the community we're dealing with—whether that's students or people in the non-student population. We're not looking to take additional measures around the students that we would not apply to other parts of the community. Now, it may be that the circumstances in which students live and operate in are slightly different, but it's just about the pattern that we see, rather than looking to take extra or extraordinary measures because students may be seeing a rise or fall in infection rates. It's also worth pointing out, as I said before, that the leadership of every university institution and the National Union of Students, at an NUS Wales level and locally, I think have been very responsible in their messaging and leadership on this issue. 

In terms of living alone, you've heard what the First Minister had to say: it's a matter of active consideration within the Government, we're looking to see what we can do, and that's in accordance with our 21-day review process. We'll be reporting on Friday. If we could make a decision before then, then it is, of course, open for us to do so, but this is not a matter where we're looking to take weeks and weeks of consideration and avoid making a decision. The First Minister set that out in some detail earlier on today. 

On field hospitals in Wales, we are learning from the first wave. You will recall, being a member of the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee, the briefing we provided to that committee on the reasonable worst-case scenario models and information we're getting from actual data and information here in Wales. That's the basis on which we're planning and the basis on which we're expecting health boards to plan. The field hospital choice that I have made should provide us with the capacity that the Member indicates for that level of assurance. And if we do see a surge, then we should be able to make sure that people are treated appropriately within our system here in Wales, either in expanded direct provision within a national health service hospital, or indeed in one of the newer NHS field hospitals that we have within Wales. But, as ever, we'll need to continue to review the position as the spread of coronavirus impacts all the choices that we make. But, I hope that we can intervene early enough not to need the full extent of that capacity and the harm that would mean many, many citizens in Wales will be suffering.