Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I move the motion before us to approve the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 3) (Wales) Regulations 2020.

We are now in the second week of the firebreak, and I want to start by reminding Members why we introduced these extraordinary measures on 23 October. We continue to be faced with a very real and increasing public health threat. At the time we introduced the regulations the virus was spreading rapidly in every part of Wales, and we had just gone through the deadliest week of the pandemic since the peak in April. We listened to and weighed carefully the advice of SAGE and our own technical advisory cell in making this decision. We had 17 local health protection areas in place, which made a significant difference but were not enough on their own. The seven-day rolling incidence rate for Wales was at more than 130 cases per 100,000 people. It has since increased to over 250 cases per 100,000. Four local authority areas now have over 300 cases per 100,000, and cases in areas like Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion were getting or going beyond 50 cases per 100,000. Failing to act risked overwhelming our NHS. The number of people being taken to hospital with coronavirus was growing and it still continues to grow each day. We had to ensure that our critical care units could still look after people who are seriously ill.

We're not alone, of course, in introducing national restrictions. We're seeing restrictions in Northern Ireland and Scotland, and, in a major policy change this weekend, the Prime Minister announced a four-week national lockdown in England from Thursday. Yesterday, the Prime Minister referred to a medical and moral disaster if action in England did not take place. We acted earlier in Wales, but welcome the lockdown in England, which reinforces the seriousness of the threat that we face within each nation of the UK. There is no magic bullet, but our ambition is to get through to Christmas without needing another national firebreak.

The four nations discussions that began in earnest at COBRA yesterday should help all of us to achieve that shared ambition. Everyone has a role to play in our national effort to ensure that the firebreak is successful. It remains vital that people still observe social distancing, regular hand washing and wearing a face covering where required to do so. The more people we meet, the more people are at risk from coronavirus. We ask people to not only think about whether something is permitted, but whether it is necessary and sensible—what should we be doing? Everyone in Wales is still required to stay at home and work from home wherever possible.

We have sought to minimise the disruption to children's education, so primary schools, special schools and the first two years of secondary schools returned as normal yesterday, as will older pupils who need to take exams. Older pupils and further education students are learning from home this week. Our universities will continue to provide a blend of in-person and online learning.