Coronavirus: 'Cummings effect' makes policing more difficult

Police say they worked with council officers to stop people using Talacre beach, in Flintshire

The "Cummings effect" has made policing in north Wales more difficult, the region's crime commissioner has said.

The prime minister's most senior advisor, Dominic Cummings, has said he acted reasonably after driving from London to Durham during lockdown.

But North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Arfon Jones said it meant people now thought "they can do whatever they like".

The area's health board has the highest number of coronavirus cases in Wales.

A Number 10 spokeswoman thanked police for working hard to keep people safe and said the UK government's focus was on helping the "country recover safely" from the virus.

Mr Cummings came under intense criticism after driving 260 miles from London to his parents' farm in Durham with his child and wife, who was experiencing coronavirus type symptoms.

Dominic Cummings has said he acted reasonably and legally

Durham Police have said he may have committed a "minor breach" of lockdown rules, but would not pursue the matter further.

But Mr Jones said officers in the region were overstretched, and Mr Cummings' actions were the equivalent of "driving a coach and horses through legislation".

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While in England, travel is now unlimited, in Wales people have to stay local and are being urged to travel as little as possible.

Officers in north Wales have reported stopping tourists travelling across the border for days out on beaches, and for walks in the countryside, despite the rules.

One officer said he had been "flagged down" by tourists from Bolton while on patrol in Snowdonia, who asked for sight seeing recommendations.

Former Anglesey county councillor Jeff Evans told the Local Democracy Reporting Service residents had been left "frustrated" after calling police to report people breaking rules, and finding out officers were unable to attend.

Holy Island councillor Dafydd Rhys Thomas said he had come across a family of eight, from the midlands, trying to get directions to a beach on Sunday.

Mr Jones said there was a continuing influx of visitors from across the border, despite the Covid-19 restrictions, and police could not cope.

"The force does not have the capacity to check every single vehicle travelling in north Wales, especially when there are other great demands on policing as well as coronavirus," he said.

"As a result of the Cummings effect, people think they can do whatever they like and that has made policing north Wales even more difficult," he added.

Mr Jones was also critical of the level of fines police can issue for people breaking rules in Wales, saying the fines were not enough to act as a "real deterrent".In late May, the Welsh Government confirmed that the maximum penalties for breaching lockdown had risen to £1,920, after breaking rules six times, while in England the maximum is £3,200.

The Betsi Cadwaldr health board in north Wales now has the highest number of known coronavirus cases in Wales, reporting 2,876 cases as of Wednesday.

On Wednesday, the board reported 53 new cases, the highest of any area, with Cwm Taf reporting 11, and all other boards reporting less than 10, according to Public Health Wales figures.

Welsh Secretary Simon Hart has said the region is an "uncomfortable outlier" and had spoken to First Minister Mark Drakeford."It is at the moment if you look at the statistics an uncomfortable outlier from what is going on across the rest of the UK and Wales in particular," he said.