Welsh first minister Mark Drakeford has warned his compatriots that more severe coronavirus restrictions could be implemented after Christmas in response to the omicron variant.
Wales currently has relatively light Covid-19 guidance in place, asking the public to observe social distancing and meet outdoors when possible, wear masks in public spaces, wash hands with care and be prepared to show an NHS Covid Pass for entry to cinemas, theatres and concert halls.
But speaking during a televised address on Monday 13 December, Mr Drakeford said all eligible adults in Wales would be offered a booster jab by the end of the year, which he said was “vital” to seeing off the threat posed by the new strain of the virus, which has infected 62 people in Cymru so far.
Interviewed subsequently on ITV Wales, the first minister said: “As we know, the traditional way of doing things in Wales is people go out together and socialise in the run-up to Christmas, and then in the post-Christmas period there’s a standing back from that.
“There may be a period in the post-Christmas days when we can do more to stem the flow of the omicron variant. But, in this business, what will happen in three or four weeks’ time is a long way away.”
Mr Drakeford is expected to give a further update on the situation on Friday 17 December.
His health minister, Baroness Eluned Morgan, had earlier warned that the devolved government was “currently not taking anything off the table” as infections rise.
“The last thing we want to do is cancel Christmas. I think it is important we make that absolutely clear,” she told journalists at a briefing.
“But we are not currently taking anything off the table either, so the best thing for people to do, in order to see if we can remain in a situation where we are all able to see each other over Christmas is to take precautions now, so that we don’t see the kind of increasing rates that we are all expecting.
“A lot of this is in our hands, as individuals and as a community. The more you mix now, the more likely you are to contract Covid, and this particular form of Covid.
“Certainly, at the very minimum we will be asking people to take lateral flow tests before they mix at Christmas but that is something they should be undertaking already, particularly if they are meeting older and vulnerable people,” she added.
“I think people should plan because we don’t know what the situation will be at Christmas time. Taking the opportunity to do things early would be a sensible option, but we have no idea what Christmas will look like because it’s such an unpredictable situation.”
Baroness Morgan’s department is striving to hit a target of 200,000 booster vaccinations a day, with health boards again opening pop-up centres, including walk-in and drive-through clinics with longer opening hours, often partially staffed by volunteers.
Dr Gill Richardson of Public Health Wales has meanwhile suggested that the rules surrounding the NHS Covid Pass may have to be reviewed in light of the ramping up of the booster programme.
On schools, the national picture is currently being assessed after two local councils, Denbighshire and Anglesey, decided to close theirs early – from 17 December – forcing students to take their learning online for the final days of term.
