Fire-Break: “We won’t be cancelling Christmas but it will be very different – it will be a ‘coronavirus’ Christmas”

With a ban on large gatherings for Halloween and bonfire night we wanted to know what Welsh Government's plans for the festive period were as we prepare for the 'fire-breaker' lockdown. Mark Drakeford joined us as our guest ahead of the new restrictions coming into force this evening.

Wales will face 17-days of restrictions and Terry Underhill opened his interview by asking "How different will this lockdown be for us?" Mr Drakeford said: "I am afraid in Wales because the Coronavirus is circulating so fast and in all parts of Wales - that we have to have a period where we can turn the tide back.

"It will look a lot like it did back in March and April of this year, because we wanted to keep the period as short as possible. There's a trade off here between length and depth.

"If you are going to keep it short, you've got to have it deep and therefore other than schools where we are going to be able to allow primary schools to return and the first two years of secondary.

"Everything else I am afraid will be an instruction to people to stay at home and minimise contact with other households."

When asked whether he thought Boris Johnson needed to follow Wales' lead Mr Drakeford told Greatest Hit Radio South Wales listeners: “Boris got the same advice as us. Sage the national committee that advises on this thing was saying a month ago a fire-break was the most effective way of bringing the R-number down below one.

"But on the other hand I have to recognise the Prime Minister in his English capacity - it's a far bigger place. The gap between the most affected and least affected areas is far wider that it is in Wales. It is more complicated if you are dealing with the hundreds of local authorities, rather than the twenty-two we work with in Wales."

To find out whether this lockdown could be extended or if there could be another one in the new year... click link and WATCH full interview:

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