4. Statement by the Minister for Health and Social Services: Update on COVID-19 Vaccinations

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 4:55 pm on 9 February 2021.

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Photo of Vaughan Gething Vaughan Gething Labour 4:55, 9 February 2021

Thank you. I'll deal with both points. In terms of Dr Medlicott and the work the local GPs have done around police medics, you're very current, because today I've agreed, and there's a note gone out through our system, that police medics are to be considered as analogous to group 2, because of the direct patient contact work they have, and it's analogous to a range of other activities. So, that does make sense. And a similar understanding of the JCVI advice: it doesn't always allow us to focus on every single nuanced area of practice, and that's why we've had to review some of these as we have gone on—the same points about the intimate care provision that some members of staff in education provide for special educational needs children in particular. So, that should be a consistent picture across Wales, and that's gone out into the system today, and thank you to Dr Medlicott and her colleagues for highlighting the issue, which has allowed us, including the questions you've asked, to make sure that issue is resolved. 

In terms of team Wales, I think it's a tremendous team Wales effort. And as I've said repeatedly, we—. At the start of this, I said that we would end up in a position not dissimilar to other UK nations, and we wouldn't be left behind. After an initial modestly slower start, we've now caught up and surpassed other UK nations. We need to maintain the pace though, not just for the next couple of weeks, but for many, many months ahead. That's why in many ways—. I said it was a marathon in my statement, but in many ways it's an ultra-marathon—one marathon after another after another, and still needing to maintain the same relentless pace to make sure we have different choices to make in the future. And I certainly look forward to being able to do so.