Caerphilly lockdown extended by at least seven days

Local coronavirus restrictions for Caerphilly County Borough have been extended by another week, the Welsh Government has confirmed.

The lockdown was introduced in Caerphilly on Tuesday, September 8, and will not end until at least October 1.

In a written statement, Welsh health minister Vaughan Gething said infection rates in the borough are falling and thanked people for sticking to the rules.

He said: “Compliance with the restrictions has been very high. However, we still have some way to go. Rates of infection remain high in the borough – above the levels we would want to see.

“After discussing the situation with the local authority, we have decided to leave the restrictions in place for at least a further seven days.

“If we continue to see a further reduction in cases in the borough, we hope we will be able to consider relaxing the local restrictions.”

The current restrictions in force

• People will not be allowed to enter or leave the Caerphilly County Borough Council area without a reasonable excuse.
• Everyone over 11 will be required to wear face coverings in indoor places, which are open to the public, such as shops, as well as on public transport – as is the case in the rest of Wales.
• People will only be able to meet outdoors for the time being. People will not be able to meet members of their extended household indoors or form an extended household (sometimes known as a “bubble”).

New, Wales-wide restrictions preventing the sale of alcohol after 10pm come into force this evening at 6pm and all hospitality businesses selling alcohol will also have to provide table service only.

Mr Gething added: “I want to encourage people living in Caerphilly borough to continue following these rules – over the last two weeks you have made a considerable difference to the spread of the virus in the area; with your continued help, we will see that downward trend continue.”