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

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:45 pm on 23 November 2021.

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Photo of Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan Labour 3:45, 23 November 2021

Thanks very much, Joyce. I think, actually, that one of the things that it might be worth us all considering is using different language around this. We keep on talking about restrictions. Well, I think that it's important that we start to talk about protections, because that's what we are putting in place—protections. We're trying to protect the public here from coronavirus. So, that's certainly something that I'm going to try and use in my discussions in future.

Certainly, in relation to the COVID pass and any possible expansion, of course that will be done in the context of the 21-day review that we undertake every three weeks. The trigger for that will be, as always, the potential and the possibility of the NHS being overwhelmed as we go into the winter period. So, that's always the trigger for us: can the NHS cope?

Frankly, we still haven't really seen the flu really come at us with the kind of force that we were expecting. We're still waiting for that, and it's possible that it will come. But we will keep an eye on things. About 10 per cent of our hospital beds at the moment are filled with COVID patients. Now, that's quite a lot of people. Obviously, we need to keep an eye on that situation, but it's also about keeping an eye on the broader NHS. That's an important situation. Diolch.