Vaughan Gething, Minister for Health and Social Services
This was published under the 2016 to 2021 administration of the Welsh Government
Welsh Government is closely monitoring the emergence of a novel coronavirus originating in Wuhan, China. Due to the enlarging geographic area affected, and evidence of person to person transmission, it is likely that people will require assessment in Wales and the wider UK.
The severity of the illness and its spread are still being assessed. The World Health Organisation has not declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) and it does not recommend any travel or trade restrictions.
The risk to the UK is currently assessed as low and to date there have been no imported cases of the novel coronavirus to Wales or the wider UK. We are treating this as an enhanced public health incident and we are working very closely with the other UK Nations. The threat from infectious diseases is always with us and the NHS in Wales and other key responders have plans in place to protect the health of the public.
Chief Medical Officers and public health agencies across the 4 Nations are co-ordinating actions so that Wales and the UK are ready to respond to further developments in this public health incident.