Guidance that people in Wales should travel no more than five miles when visiting others is to avoid “distressing scenes” such as those seen in England, First Minister Mark Drakeford has said.

Pictures have shown crowds flocking to some beaches in England – scenes not yet seen in Wales during the pandemic.

In a virtual Welsh Parliament meeting, Senedd Tory leader Paul Davies accused Mr Drakeford of angering people in more remote areas of Wales with the change to coronavirus advice.

Mr Davies said it upset people “many of whom felt the Welsh Government simply doesn’t care about those who live in the more remote parts of the country”.

The first minister said he had repeatedly said it was for people “in a sensible way to interpret what 'local' means in their own individual geographies”.

“The five-mile rule of thumb is there precisely to protect people in the further west and north of Wales from people from places where the virus has been in greater spread, from travelling to those communities and bringing the virus with them,” he said.

In recent weeks, MPs have been able to pose their questions to the prime minister via Zoom and appear in the Commons chamber on video screens.

But this week, Parliament approved a return to physical appearances over virtual ones.

There is still a limit of 50 MPs in the Commons at any time, and a motion will be brought to the House later to allow some members to join in from home.

You can watch Prime Minister's Questions from 12:00 BST by clicking on the BBC Parliament video link above.

Image source, UK Parliament/Jessica Taylor

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Cyfarthfa Park in Merthyr Tydfil reopened on Monday and local people have been enjoying the chance to return.

The Grade II registered park, complete with a castle, lake and woods, has been closed for much of lockdown.

Lesley Davies, from Merthyr Tydfil, said: “It is lovely to be back in the park. It’s such a good place to be, a beautiful place to be.

“We have really missed it just for the daily walks, really, because we come up here regularly on a weekly basis, walk round the lake and have just really missed it.”

Helen Davies, who also lives locally and works for the NHS, agreed, saying she was pleased to get out and walk around the park for some exercise.

She said it was "nice to have a bit more freedom" but felt it was "unfair that we’ve got to stay local at the moment when we’ve got families living further [afield]".

Lee Price said he had missed using the park "as it is right by my house and somewhere to walk my dog".

"We are up there every day no matter the weather," he added, saying most people appeared to be social distancing.

Image source, LDRS

First Minister Mark Drakeford is giving a statement to members of the Senedd on the Welsh Government’s actions in response to coronavirus.

Opposition parties are calling for an independent inquiry into the handling of the crisis to report before the 2021 Senedd election.

You can watch proceedings by clicking on the Senedd Live video link above.

Brian Meechan
BBC Wales business correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

Some smaller Welsh businesses have warned their future depends on larger companies, such as Tata Steel and Jaguar Land Rover, securing UK government support.

More than 90% of the work at Bartlett Engineering in Port Talbot comes from Tata, which has asked for a £500m loan from the Treasury.

The firm said it may have to close its doors if that is not forthcoming.

The UK government has been asked to comment.

Scientists are running a trial to see if ibuprofen can help hospital patients who are sick with coronavirus.

The team from London's Guy's and St Thomas' hospital and King's College believe the drug, which is an anti-inflammatory as well as a painkiller, could treat breathing difficulties.

They hope the low-cost treatment can keep patients off ventilators.

In the trial,, external called Liberate, half of the patients will receive ibuprofen in addition to usual care.

The trial will use a special formulation of ibuprofen rather than the regular tablets that people might usually buy.

Image source, Getty Images

Coastguards are reminding beachgoers to park responsibly claiming that vehicles on the roadside could have potentially hindered a rescue on Tuesday.

They were called to a evacuate a casualty from Rhossili beach in Swansea Bay who managed to get themselves to safety.

But had they not, coastguards said the emergency services would have had "extreme difficulty" getting through to them due to the number of cars parked outside the closed National Trust car park and along the road.

In March, the Betsi Cadwaladr health board in north Wales launched an appeal for volunteers to help during the pandemic - and more than 1,800 people signed up.

One of those volunteers is Ian Price, who was furloughed at the end of March, and then decided to sign up at Ysbyty Gwynedd, Bangor.

He said: “I usually work in a restaurant, but due to the restrictions around the hospitality sector I have been off work since 23 March.

“I had seen the NHS were looking for volunteers so I decided to apply – we are very lucky to have the NHS so it’s nice to able to offer something in return.”

Due to the visiting restrictions in place at the hospitals, he has been helping to deliver items such as clothes, brought in by friends and relatives of patients on the wards.

Image source, Betsi Cadwaladr health board

Steve Marriott suffered a heart attack in 2012 and signed up to become a volunteer to give something back to the NHS.

The 59-year-old from Wrexham, on furlough from his job as a mental health first aid instructor for Remploy, said: “My role as a Covid-19 response volunteer sees me delivering important equipment to various locations across north east Wales.

“Not only has volunteering helped with my own personal wellbeing, but being out and about having conversations with many of the other important key workers has been inspirational."

Image source, Betsi Cadwaladr health board

Adrian Lemberton, a retired information security manager for Lancashire Police, is one of eight volunteers currently supporting staff at Llandudno Hospital.

He said: “I’m really enjoying my time as a volunteer, it’s really nice as a lot of the time I am chatting with the patients.

“I think it brings them a lot of comfort to have someone to talk to as they can’t see their families at the moment due to the visiting restrictions being in place.

"As staff are so busy it means they can’t spend a lot of time chatting to the patients so I think having us there really helps them with that."

BBC Radio Wales

The topic of whether children should return to school before September is set to be a major discussion point today ahead of an announcement by the education minister.

Clare Ferguson-Walker, from Llanteg, Pembrokeshire, has children aged 11 and 15, and said: "I think personally, I would like the children to go back in September."

She described homeschooling as "really hard", saying part of her would "breathe a massive sigh of relief" if her children did return to lessons before summer.

"But in terms of what school would be like, trying to get the kids to socially distance, etc, I think that might have a psychological impact anyway," she said.

"In terms of safety, no - let's just wait. Let's not take the risk. This is our kids we're talking about."

On BBC Radio Wales Breakfast, Rachel Meredith, a mother of a 10 and five-year-old from Blaenau Gwent, agreed.

She said: "My daughter has no sense of social distancing. She hasn't been out of the house since this all began.

"I did have to take her shopping once and it didn't work out very well.

"These children, especially my son who has autism, he hasn't got any comprehension of what social distancing is.

The first thing he is going to want to do is hug his teacher. That is what kids do. September is definitely the way forward."

She added: "It is hard work. I take my hat off to every teacher in the country because it is really hard work, this homeschooling, but the children's safety is my priority."

Image source, Reuters

The leader of the Conservative opposition in the Welsh Parliament has said an inquiry into the tackling of coronavirus in Wales must take place and "not drag on for years".

Commenting ahead of a debate in the Senedd today, Paul Davies said: “The coronavirus pandemic is the most significant challenge in a generation, and it is incumbent upon us that we learn lessons for the future; an independent public inquiry will enable us to do just that.

“It is vital that this inquiry is open and transparent, and completely independent from the Welsh Government to ensure public confidence in the process.

“The key findings of any inquiry must be published as soon as is practicably possible, before the next Welsh Parliamentary election, so that those Ministers who are responsible for the Welsh Government’s response to the crisis can be held to account.

“The last thing we need is an inquiry controlled by politicians which drags on for years.”

Welsh Government ministers have not committed to a structure or time frame for an inquiry but back the principle of holding one.

Police in Pembrokeshire have fined visitors from Cardiff, Newport and Caerphilly for breaching lockdown regulations.

They had all made the journey to Angle beach.

Officers from the Dyfed-Powys force will continue to patrol the area.

Most summer events have already been cancelled because of the pandemic... and those scheduled around Christmas are now starting to be affected as well.

Organisers of the Portmeirion Food and Craft Fair in Gwynedd, scheduled to take place between December 4 and 6, have decided to call it off.

"We have not taken this decision lightly but we do feel that it is the right option to take and is in the best interest for all, to minimise any risk to the health of the public as well as to exhibitors and to our staff," they said in a statement.

Image source, Jeff Buck/ Geograph

Portugal's foreign minister has said anyone in the UK thinking of going to his country this summer will be "most welcome" amid coronavirus.

Augusto Santos Silva said he hoped an "air bridge" between the UK and Portugal could be secured by the end of June.

UK Home Secretary Priti Patel is due to tell MPs later that the planned 14-day quarantine for arrivals is necessary.

She will also say air bridges to countries with low Covid-19 infection rates are possible in the future.

This would mean that people arriving from certain places will not have to self-isolate.

Ms Patel will say the quarantine is needed "to prevent a second wave of the virus".

Image source, Getty Images

Former Wales and Lions captain Sam Warburton has thanked all the volunteers "working tirelessly" to help vulnerable children across Wales during lockdown.

Charity FareShare Cymru is now delivering enough food to make 50,000 meals a week - up from 25,900 before lockdown.

It delivers these to frontline charities across south Wales, including homeless hostels, school breakfast clubs and food banks.

The food includes fresh meat and fish, fruit and vegetables, ready meals, milk and cheese.

In the weeks following the lockdown, demand for its service soared and the charity has distributed almost 178 tonnes of food, working with a further 53 charitable organisations which are supporting vulnerable people through the crisis.

Project manager Sarah Germain said: “Because of the lockdown many more families and individuals are finding themselves in really tough circumstances, and demand for our food has skyrocketed.

"We’re doing everything we can to continue to get food onto people’s plates, whether that’s delivering fresh food to homeless hostels and domestic violence refuges, or supplying community organisations with the packets and tins they need to get vital food supplies onto the doorsteps of families who are self isolating."

Students might have to stay in a "protective bubble" of the same small group, when the UK's university campuses reopen in the autumn.

University leaders suggested students would live and study with the same group to minimise mixing.

They were setting out safety measures for a socially-distanced student life - including a virtual freshers' week.

A survey suggested 71% of students would prefer to start the term later, if they got more in-person teaching.

University campuses have been closed since the coronavirus lockdown, with teaching switching online, and their representative body, Universities UK has been setting out how they might bring students back for the autumn term.

Image source, Getty Images

Statements on coronavirus and a debate on an independent inquiry into the response in Wales are the main focuses in the virtual Senedd today.

All Neath Port Talbot council-owned parks are set to re-open to the public on Thursday.

The local authority says special safety measures will be in place to help keep visitors and staff safe.

Children’s play areas within parks will remain closed, as will other facilities including toilets and cafes.

The 18 parks re-opening are: Craig Gwladys Country Park, Cilfrew, Victoria Gardens, Neath (bandstand will be cordoned off), Jersey Park, Briton Ferry, Vivian Park, Sandfields, Talbot Park, Port Talbot (bandstand cordoned off), Baglan Park, Baglan, Tollgate Park, Margam, Parc Siencyn Powell, Cwmavon, King George V Park, Pontardawe, Parc Y Werin, Gwaun Cae Gurwen, Parc Y Darren, Ystalyfera, Mount Pleasant, Neath, Dyfed Road, Neath, Bryn Park, Bryn, Melyn Park, Melyn, Twll yn y Wal, Taibach, Margam Country Park, Gnoll Country Park.

Image source, Geograph/eswales

Police forces in Wales have reported the need to intervene over two large gatherings of teenagers.

Llanelli Police intervened when about 40 youths were jumping into the sea and drinking alcohol, while Neath Port Talbot Police dispersed a similar-sized group from Trebanos Rugby Club.