London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Aug 22, 2026

Covid: Wales moving to increasing normality, says minister

Covid: Wales moving to increasing normality, says minister

More of Wales' Covid-19 rules could change over the next few weeks from being legal requirements to government advice, according to a Welsh minister.

Mick Antoniw said Wales was "moving to a stage where we are having increasing normality" but that ministers and officials would evaluate data ahead of the next review on 15 July.

All legal restrictions are expected to be lifted in England on 19 July.

And the SNP government is aiming to do the same in Scotland on 9 August.

With no date set in Wales, the Conservatives have accused the Welsh government of being "stuck in lockdown mode".

Responding to reports on Sunday that England will move into a period without legal restrictions, where the public will have to exercise "personal responsibility", Andrew RT Davies MS, the leader of the Conservatives in the Senedd, tweeted: "It's time for Welsh government to provide clarity on Wales' route to normality."

A further 535 people have tested positive for coronavirus, according to latest data published by Public Health Wales.

Counsel General Mr Antoniw told the BBC's Politics Wales programme the Welsh government's "current thinking is that we have obviously an increase in the level of infections, but we have less hospitalisation out of that".

"We want to maximise the vaccination rates still further, and then around the 15th or 16th of July, we'll have a review, and we'll consider what further easings can be taken within the data that we actually have," he said.

"Setting a date has its own problems because, if you're saying you want to achieve these certain things on this particular date... it is still always dependent on what the latest information is in respect of the infection rates.

"We are certainly moving in the direction of a much greater normality.

"But the pandemic is going to be with us for some time," he added.

Mick Antoniw MS: "There are still risks out there"

There have only been minor changes to the rules in Wales since 7 June after the first minister announced a pause in a bid to reduce daily hospital admissions and allow time to vaccinate more people.

Ministers had considered permitting more indoor mixing, allowing more people to attend indoor events and reopening ice skating rinks, before deciding to hold off.

In Wales, people are currently able to meet in private homes if they are in an extended household with a fixed set of other homes, unlike in England where six people from any household can meet.

Nightclubs remain closed, as they do across the UK, while limits on social distancing and how many people can meet outside remain.

The restrictions will be reviewed the week starting 12 July, with any further lifting due to be announced by the first minister towards the end of the week.

Asked on Politics Wales if he foresaw big changes to the rules in Wales during that review, Mr Antoniw said: "I certainly would envisage a shift in the way in which we assess risks, that we look at things differently.

"We look at how much more can be done on the ground by way of guidelines and advice because, clearly, we're moving to a stage where we are having increasing normality.

"But it's got to be something that's based on the reality of the fact there are still risks out there.

"So, over the next week or so, all that data's going to be evaluated.

"We'll take advice from the medical officers and from the scientists, and then we'll work out basically what is the best next step forward in terms of moving towards that greater normality.

"But also in a way that doesn't put people at risk," he added.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Mandelson Epstein Case in Jeopardy as U.S. Files Stay Out of Reach
Prince Harry and Six Others Ordered to Pay £9.5 Million After High Court Defeat
The rise and fall of Hui Ka Yan, China’s richest man
Woke: Britain Considers Plain Packaging for Cigars as Specialist Shops Warn of Industry Collapse
Britain's Public-Service Productivity Remains Below 2019 as £80 Billion Output Gap Fuels WFH Debate
Petrol Bombs Set Luxury Cars Alight Outside Birmingham Wedding as Police Hunt Three Men
Bitcoin Surges Toward $80,000 as Short Squeeze and ETF Inflows Ignite Crypto Rally
Prince Harry and Co-Claimants Ordered to Pay £9.5 Million Toward Daily Mail Publisher’s Legal Costs
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Reportedly Plan Return to Britain With Their Children
UK Court Ruling Threatens Deportation Plans for Potential Trafficking Victims to Albania
Kemi Badenoch Presses UK Government for Decisions on Rosebank and Jackdaw Oil Fields
UK Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Calls for Ban on Goods from Occupied West Bank
Andy Burnham Government to Place Civil Servants Directly in English Mayoral Offices
Met Office Warns Major El Niño Could Bring Stormier, Wetter Autumn to UK
UK Economy Gains Unexpected Momentum Ahead of Andy Burnham Government’s First Budget
Twenty-Nine US States Take Meta to Trial Over Alleged Child Addiction on Instagram and Facebook
Former Scottish National Party Executive Peter Murrell Jailed for Five Years Over £400,000 Embezzlement
Moderna and Merck's Personalized Cancer Vaccine Succeeds in Historic Late-Stage Melanoma Trial
Prince Harry and Meghan to Move Back to Britain With Their Children
England and Wales Have Fewer Than 1,800 Prison Places Left for Men
Royal Navy to Accelerate DragonFire Laser Deployment Against Growing Drone Threat
Northern Ireland Approves Five Hundred Million Pound Belfast Harbour Expansion
Great British Railways Takes Full Control of Avanti West Coast as Rail Nationalisation Reaches Final Stage
UK AI Safety Institute Calls for Mandatory Security Audits of Advanced AI Models
Scotland Secures Three Billion Pounds for Floating Offshore Wind Hub in Aberdeen
Government Overrides Local Councils to Approve Green Belt Housing Across Southern England
UK and EU Move Toward Mutual Recognition of Food Standards to Ease Cross-Channel Trade
Government Plans Multibillion-Pound Private Healthcare Expansion to Cut NHS Surgical Backlogs
Bank of England Signals Faster Rate Cuts as Inflation Falls Below the Two Percent Target
Suspected People Smuggler Arrested After Investigation Identified Him
Children's Doctors Warn That Vaping Can Lead Young People to Smoking
Hundreds of Thousands of Students Receive GCSE and Vocational Results Across England, Wales and Northern Ireland
Here Is What Can Never Happen in Your Country: Taiwan Is Giving Money to All Its People Because It Collected Too Much Tax
UK Inflation Rises to 2.9% as Energy Bills Jump
UK Issues New Conduct Guide for Asylum Seekers on Consent and Respect
Moderna Shares Surge After Positive Personalized Skin Cancer Trial Results
UK Markets Watch US National Debt Surpass Forty Trillion Dollars
UK Broadcasters Urge Government to Invest in Digital Participation and Broadband
CVC Capital Partners and Standard Life Launch Two Billion Pound Pension Risk Transfer Venture
UK Private Sector Productivity Growth Accelerates in Second Quarter
UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband Condemns Israeli E1 Settlement Tender
UK Watchdog Investigates Trainline, Virgin Atlantic and RED Driving School Over Hidden Fees
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Plan Move to Private Home Outside London
UK Retail Sentiment Improves as Summer Spending Boosts Consumer Confidence
UK Aid Cuts Draw Warnings From Charities Over Humanitarian Consequences
UK Financial Conduct Authority Issues Guidance for Motor Finance Redress Scheme
UK Met Office Launches Aviation Programme to Reduce Climate Impact of Persistent Contrails
Former UK Civil Service Chief Received Record 500,000 Pound Severance Payment
West Midlands to Bring Bus Network Under Public Franchising Model
UK Government Drops Plan to Relax Affordable Housing Requirements After Backlash
×