"Stay at home" still the message in Wales

10 May 2020, 15:12 | Updated: 10 May 2020, 21:34

First Minister of Wales Mark Drakeford underlined the "stay at home" call after he UK government changed its messaging in England to "Stay alert".

Speaking on Sunday, after having confirmed Wales' lockdown would continue for a further three weeks, Mark Drakeford said:

"My message to the people of Wales hasn’t changed.

Staying at home is the best way you can protect yourself and others.

If you do need to leave the house for essential purposes, including exercise, it is vital that you keep 2 metres apart from others."

On Friday the First Minister confirmed three small changes to the lockdown rules allowing exercise more than once a day, garden centres to reopen with social distancing and for local authorities to begin preparing libraries and recycling centres for reopening.

The Welsh Government is responsible for lockdown rules in Wales as this falls under health policy which is devolved in Wales and there are now a number of ways the rules in Wales and England now differ.

Other Welsh ministers underlined the First Minister's statement.

Wales' Health Minister Vaughan Gething tweeted:

"The Welsh Government message has not changed. Stay at home and if you do go out observe the social distancing rules".

Lee Waters, the Deputy Minister for Economy and Transport, added:

"We don’t agree with the change of message. It risks sending the wrong signal. We are not out of the woods. In Wales Stay at home"

Wales' chief medical officer Frank Atherton was also among officials here adding his voice to the calls to continue following the advice