First Minister Mark Drakeford has announced today (Friday, Sept 11) that face masks will be made compulsory in shops and indoor public spaces from Monday, September 14.
Drakeford will announce the new rules at a press conference to be held at 12:30pm.
The First Minister also announced plans to emulate England’s ‘rule of six’ by limiting the number of people who can meet up.
Masks are already compulsory on public transport in Wales and Drakeford is expected to announce the full details regarding exactly where face coverings will be expected to be worn later.
Reactions to this announcement have been varied with some welcoming the move whilst others see compulsory face masks as somehow infringing their human rights.
These changes will not apply in Caerphilly County Borough Council area, where local restrictions have been introduced, including a suspension on extended households meeting indoors, to control a sharp rise in coronavirus cases and protect public health.
The First Minister said: “We said back in August that if coronavirus reached a certain threshold in Wales we would revisit it and today we will go to a position in Wales where 20 people in 100,000 in Wales are suffering from coronavirus, having reached that threshold we will be making the use of face coverings mandatory.”
With a local lockdown in force in Caerphilly and other areas nearby, RCT, anticipating a rise in the number of cases, Drakeford’s announcement is seen by many to be a perfect response to a situation that could escalate quickly unless something is done.
