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.

These Regulations amend the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 2) (Wales) Regulations 2020 (the “principal Regulations”). The amendments—

1. a

   provide that no person may, without a reasonable excuse, be involved in organising certain unlicensed music events (within the meaning given in regulation 14B of the principal Regulations as to be inserted by regulation 2(7) of these Regulations). A person who fails to comply with the restriction commits an offence under regulation 20(1)(b) of the principal Regulations, and an enforcement officer may issue a fixed penalty notice under regulation 21 to anyone that the officer reasonably believes to have committed the offence,

2. b

   provide that people have a reasonable excuse (under regulation 14 of the principal Regulations) to gather indoors to visit a resident in a care home, hospice, or secure accommodation for children,

3. c

   clarify that people also have a reasonable excuse to gather to access educational services (both indoors as a reasonable excuse under regulation 14 of the principal Regulations, and outdoors as a reasonable excuse under regulation 14A of those Regulations),

4. d

   permit casinos to open, but measures must be taken to minimise the risk of exposure to coronavirus on the premises,

5. e

   make other technical changes, most of which are consequential on the other amendments made by these Regulations.

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.