Covid: Cardiff ‘could go into local lockdown’

The capital of Wales is facing a local lockdown as the number of coronavirus cases rises “rapidly”.

Cardiff council leader Huw Thomas warned of possible travel restrictions and mixing of different households.

He said in a virtual meeting of the authority that in the last seven days, the area has seen 38.2 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.

Thomas said the city was about to enter the Welsh Government “red zone”.

He said that if that happened “then I hope we will implement more restrictions as we have seen elsewhere” in South Wales.

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Cardiff is home to 366,903 people and would be the seventh area where stricter restrictions are imposed.

People living in Caerphilly, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Bridgend, Blaenau Gwent, Merthyr Tydfil, and Newport cannot leave their areas without a reasonable excuse.

If Cardiff follows them to closure, it would mean that more than 1.2 million people – roughly a third of Wales’ population – would be under stricter restrictions than the rest of the country.

Conservative Councilor Jayne Cowan asked Thomas if Cardiff would be put on a local lockdown in the next 48 hours.

He replied, “We will review the numbers again in the morning and make a decision based on that.”

It occurs when the Caerphilly blockade has been confirmed for at least seven more days.

Thomas said the restrictions could be introduced “quickly” and could include a ban on households from gathering or traveling outside of Cardiff.

The council leader said the coronavirus test positivity rate stood at 3.8%, which exceeds the government’s amber threshold of 2.5%.

There has been a sharp increase in hospital emergency attendance in the last week, he added, and the spread of the infection “is most often found in domestic settings.”

Household mixing ‘happens too often’

“Our data protection and traceback test suggests that this is particularly in cases where the rules of the family bubble have been violated, and also where people mingle in indoor home environments and do not follow the rule of six.” He said.

“The truth is that indoor mixing with people who do not live in extended homes in homes, cafes, bars and restaurants is happening far too often.”

Thomas said there had been a significant increase in people ages 35 to 50 who tested positive.

Any new restrictions should be introduced by the Government of Wales.

Thomas said he met with Prime Minister Mark Drakeford and Health Minister Vaughan Gething ahead of Thursday night’s council meeting.

The threshold for foreign countries to be added to the list of destinations where people must be quarantined for 14 days upon arrival in the UK is 20 cases per 100,000.

The Welsh conservative’s health spokesman, Andrew RT Davies, tweeted that “if such a decision is imminent, it is up to the Welsh Labor government to present a financial support package for the many companies (particularly hospitality) that will be devastated by the news.” .

He said a general blockade of the city “really isn’t local.”

Rhun ap Iorwerth, Plaid Cymru health spokesperson, said: “It is deeply concerning that the virus has taken hold again as more stringent restrictions are being considered in more and more areas, and that this now includes our city. Capital, our populated area, is a sign of the seriousness of the situation. ” Closing the pubs a little earlier will not be enough; the Welsh government should think of a series of new steps, perhaps tighter but for a shorter period, to control these new peaks. “