Vaughan Gething MS, Minister for Health and Social Services
This was published under the 2016 to 2021 administration of the Welsh Government
I have today laid regulations to make further amendments to the Health Protection (Coronavirus, International Travel) (Wales) Regulations 2020 and the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 4) (Wales) Regulations 2020.
Following the advice of the Chief Medical Officer and UK Government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, these regulations:
- provide that a person required to isolate as a result of having had close contact with a person who has tested positive for coronavirus must isolate for 10 days instead of 14, and makes transitional provision for those who are already isolating;
- permit a child who is required to isolate to move to another household during the period of isolation if this is in line with existing arrangements relating to custody and contact with the child’s parents;
The International Travel Regulations are also amended to reduce the period for which a person is required to isolate from 14 days to 10 days and to permit a child who is required to isolate to move to another household during the period of isolation if this is in line with existing arrangements relating to custody and contact with the child’s parents.
These regulations have been made as soon as practicable following public health advice, agreed by the UK’s four CMOs, that showed little absolute risk, in reducing the period of isolation to 10 days compared with the known low compliance of 14 days.
In the published impact assessment for the self-isolation duty, we recognised the requirement to self-isolate for 14 days was likely to have a negative impact in a wide range of circumstances and on protected groups. Safely reducing the self-isolation period to 10 days will reduce these relative harms. This change reduces the length of time children and young people spend away from face to face learning, reduces the impact on those with caring responsibilities (disproportionately women) and helps to relieve the disruption for businesses and our vital public services.
The self-isolation support scheme payment of £500 is unaffected by these changes.