Covid in Wales: No firebreak lockdown planned

Last October Wales entered a 17-day firebreak lockdown

There are currently no plans for a firebreak lockdown in Wales this autumn, the Welsh government has said.

The number of hospital patients with Covid-19 is climbing in Wales.

The latest figures from Digital Health and Care Wales show the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in hospital beds has risen by 76% in a week.

On Monday the UK government denied newspaper reports it was planning an October lockdown in England.

Last October, people were told to stay at home and pubs, restaurants and non-essential shops were ordered to close Wales entered a 17-day firebreak lockdown.

But asked whether it had plans for a similar move this year, the Welsh government said: "There are no plans for a firebreak in Wales."

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It said it was continuing to closely monitor the public health situation and review the coronavirus regulations every three weeks.

"Coronavirus has not gone away and we would encourage everyone to continue to take steps to protect themselves and their loved ones, including taking up the offer of a vaccine if they have not had one yet," a spokesperson added.

Teaching union UCAC said the "wise use of a firebreak" was one of the possible measures that could be implemented "if the data about cases and infection rates justify that".

Its general secretary Dilwyn Roberts-Young told BBC Radio Cymru's Dros Frecwast: "Although everybody is keen to avoid any further disruption to face-to-face education, of course the judicious use of firebreaks is one of the possible measures that could be implemented - if the data about cases and infection rates were to justify it."

He said data on cases and infection rates in schools must be "collected, analysed and published regularly to ensure the correct decisions are made as regards the suitable level of measures required".

Cases are already being seen in schools in Ceredigion, according to council leader Ellen ap Gwynn

On Tuesday, Ceredigion council's leader said a potential October firebreak lockdown could be considered.

Ellen ap Gwynn told her cabinet she had been in an earlier national meeting with education officers and union members, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

She told them: "The numbers are increasing everywhere and everyone is concerned once again about how things will be - there might be a firebreak lockdown over half term but that's not confirmed yet at all."

She added there were already cases "coming through our schools" with 27 over the weekend.

Meanwhile, critical care consultant David Hepburn, from the Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport, said on Twitter the hospital's intensive care unit was at over 50% capacity.

"This is a similar pattern to last year - long slow increase in numbers which bodes very badly for the rest of the winter," he added.

What does the data tell us?

There were 50 patients with Covid on critical care or on ventilation on as of Wednesday, the highest figure since 2 March this year.

Public Health Wales reported 10 more deaths on Wednesday. There have been 21 deaths in the past seven days, meaning 5,712 people in Wales have died with Covid-19.

The number of people in Wales vaccinated with the first dose has risen to 2,363,623 (74.53% of the total population), while 2,194,075 (69.2%) have been fully vaccinated.

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