'This crisis is not over': Welsh First Minister Mark Drakeford hits out at Boris Johnson's 'messaging' over lockdown lifting

"The message seems much more ‘it’s all over and you can go back to doing everything as you did before’"
Kit Heren28 June 2020

The Welsh First Minister has said he is "concerned" that Boris Johnson's lockdown "messaging" may give people the impression that coronavirus is no longer a threat.

Mark Drakeford added that Wales was aligned with the central British government on the "substance" of their coronavirus policies but that he offered "a much more sober message" than the Prime Minister.

He told Sky's Sophy Ridge on Sunday programme: "We will continue to do things in the way we’ve done things in Wales – carefully, cautiously, one step at a time.

“We put our efforts into planning first and making the announcements second, not making an announcement and then thinking about how you can make those things happen.”

Boris Johnson
Rex Features

Asked to compare his approach to the British government, he added: "My concerns with the UK Government are sometimes less with the substance, where I think we’re all broadly trying to do the same things, I’m more concerned with the messaging, the way things are described.

“Here in Wales I am very keen to continue to say to Welsh citizens: coronavirus has not gone away, it remains something that kills people in Wales every day, if you don’t stay on top of it you will see things going backwards and everything we’ve done together thrown away.

“That’s a very different message to the message across the border where the message seems much more ‘it’s all over and you can go back to doing everything as you did before’.”

He added: "This crisis is not over. It's not over in Wales and it's not over in the whole of the United Kingdom."

Mr Drakeford's comments come after four straight nights of illegal music events and violence in London and across the UK, with thousands of people defying social distancing rules to gather at close quarters.

Pubs are set to open on July 4 in England (Louis Hansel )
Louis Hansel

No date has been set for similar freedoms in Wales yet.

A spokesperson for the Welsh government said: "The first minister has asked for a rapid review of the hospitality sector to consider a potential phased reopening of pubs, cafes and restaurants. Those discussions are taking place with a wide range of interests across the hospitality sector in Wales and have been constructive. We will announce our intentions when further headroom for change allows."

"We have adopted a careful and gradual approach to easing the restrictions. We will be guided by the latest scientific and medical advice and will carefully monitor the impact of each change,"

Ministers at Westminster have consistently said they are following scientific advice at all stages of their response to the coronavirus outbreak.