The Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 5) (Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2020

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

Part 2A of the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984 enables the Welsh Ministers, by regulations, to make provision for the purpose of preventing, protecting against, controlling or providing a public health response to the incidence or spread of infection or contamination in Wales.

These Regulations are made in response to the serious and imminent threat to public health which is posed by the incidence and spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in Wales. The Regulations impose requirements and restrictions on individuals, businesses and others.

These Regulations make amendments to the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 5) (Wales) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1609 (W. 335)) (the “principal Regulations”) to—

(a) bring the principal Regulations (apart from Part 6) into force on 20 December 2020;

(b) include the proposed Tier 4 area of England in the definition of “restricted UK area”, meaning that no person living in a Tier 4 area may enter Wales without a reasonable excuse;

(c) provide that Alert Level 4 applies to Wales from 20 December 2020 onwards;

(d) limit the modifications made in Schedule 6 to the principal Regulations to the restrictions applicable over the Christmas period so that they apply only on 25 December 2020.

The Welsh Ministers’ Code of Practice on the carrying out of Regulatory Impact Assessments was considered in relation to these Regulations. As a result, a regulatory impact assessment has not been prepared as to the likely cost and benefit of complying with these Regulations.