Wales will ‘not lift every restriction’ on 21 June

Drakeford was asked by WalesOnline​ if policymakers would follow in England’s footsteps on aiming to remove all restrictions on 21 June.

He said: “We don't follow suit. That has never been the way we have dealt with the whole coronavirus crisis. We make the right decisions for Wales and we make them for ourselves in our own circumstances.

"England will make the decisions that people in charge there think are right for them and we will make our own decisions. We will not be lifting every restriction in Wales from June 21."

He pointed to the new Delta variant of coronavirus, first identified in India, and warned of a third wave sweeping across the country.

Restart events

Drakeford has previously said ministers would review the public health situation ahead of 21 June “to see whether we can continue to relax the restrictions and restart indoor events.”

Up to 30 people are now able to meet outdoors in Wales as of Monday 7 June. 

Drakeford said the reintroduction of large events would be phased with outdoor events permitted first as “the risk of infection is significantly less than it is indoors.” 

“This is why we are phasing in the changes in this three-week cycle,” he explained. 

Enjoy outdoors

“This will allow more people to enjoy events outdoors and take advantage of the Welsh summer, while we continue to roll out the vaccination programme to all adults.”

The country is set to surpass its vaccination target a month ahead of schedule, expecting to reach 75% take-up for first doses across all priority groups and age groups.

What’s more, all adults will be offered a vaccine by the start of next week, meaning Wales is well on track to reach its first jabs target by the end of July.

In England, businesses are hopeful that 21 June will see the removal of all legal restrictions on social contact.