As our motion states, we must recognise the significant adverse impact of local coronavirus restrictions on businesses and other employers, and note the need to ensure that coronavirus restrictions that impact upon employers are proportionate. To help keep our economy functioning whilst protecting against COVID transmission, you need localised data, and unless the Welsh Government provides this, obvious conclusions will be drawn. Instead, this First Minister's decision on lockdowns in Wales appear to be based on a paper that has not been peer reviewed sufficiently to be published. Just to be clear, scientific peer review is the cornerstone of science.

The following statements have been received from constituents in Flintshire, Wrexham, Denbighshire and Conwy: 'I would like to question the validity of the local travel restrictions imposed on councils in north Wales. If I travel outside my own county, it is to go hiking, where I keep my own company, to help with my mental health issues. I wonder if you'd be able to point this out to the health and First Ministers on my behalf. I feel as though I'm living under a dictatorship here in Wales in comparison to other parts of the UK'; 'I'm writing as a concerned citizen to express my thanks for the way a number of Senedd Members have spoken out against the appalling and ridiculous restrictions imposed on north Wales by the Welsh Government. I live in Prestatyn, which means I can travel 30-plus miles but only 2 miles east and 3 miles west'; 'We can't have a drink in a socially distanced bar with our neighbours or other close friends, yet we can wander around a crowded supermarket, where we can pick up and put back items on the shelves'; 'We were the only people at the bar and we feel for the staff as, if this continues, they will close with the loss of many jobs. It's almost as if the Welsh Government are intentionally targeting tourism and the hospitality sector'; 'I'm writing to you with great concern to express my continued dismay and anger at the way the Welsh Government is handling the ongoing coronavirus crisis. It feels like we're living in a dictatorship'; 'I live half a mile from the English border, so most of my life is lived in England: dentist, chiropody, leisure et cetera. I can travel 30 miles in the opposite direction and stay in county, but not half a mile across the border. It makes no sense whatsoever'; 'I wholly support the fight against COVID, but it must be viewed in context. The COVID restrictions are riven with inconsistencies and illogicalities. Added to that, the disparity in the regulations between Wales and England is confusing and are unhelpful, particularly for those of us who live on the border. Many businesses are trapped in impossible no-win situations and will fail as a result of Welsh Government policy'; 'I'm concerned about the COVID-19 infection rates but fear the Welsh Government are on some sort of crusade and seem hellbent on using restrictive lockdowns as the main solution. I must confess to being a loyal member of the Labour Party, but in all consciousness, I cannot support that direction here'; 'I find it alarming and preposterous that the Welsh Government can openly state that you have to agree with their social policies before you can receive Government funding'. This quote really is an insult to pluralist democracy and the first step on the road, quote, to a fascist dictatorship.

Hospitality representatives wrote: 'It is deeply concerning that such blunt instruments are being considered again, given the significant damage inflicted on our sector during the national lockdown earlier this year; and, 'I have a number of clients operating hospitality businesses, all of whom have struggled to stay viable economically but also have always placed employee and customer safety first. We're still being driven by risk-avoidance, when we should be in risk-management mode—an accredited and monitored licence to trade grading system, with a clear message to consumers and providing some solace during this pandemic.'

It's also incomprehensible that the Welsh Government has excluded small bed and breakfast businesses from grant support again. Yesterday, the finance Minister told me that they should speak to Business Wales, but having tried this many times, they state that any loan agreements would push them into unmanageable debt and restate that they support the local economy and should be entitled to help. Just what have this Welsh Government got against bed and breakfasts in Wales? These decisions are being taken in Cardiff, and this Welsh Government must be held to public account. I hope that the media take note of that also. Thank you.