Wales should follow New Zealand lockdown plan, says member
Plaid Cymru Leader Adam Price has said the Welsh Government’s exit strategy should mirror the New Zealand model with a focus on testing, tracing and isolating.
The Welsh Government is expected to publish its exit strategy today.
He said: “The Welsh Government’s exit strategy should mirror the model adopted so successfully by New Zealand. That means all efforts focused on driving down the R number to reduce the number of avoidable deaths to zero.
“Then, when the number of new cases has been successfully suppressed nationally, the Welsh Government should also consider a more local approach, with the ability to re-impose lockdown measures quickly in response to the emergence of new clusters.
“However, the key to easing restrictions safely remains the implementation of a comprehensive and localised testing and tracing program. We can’t even begin to significantly ease restrictions in Wales without having a testing, tracing and isolating infrastructure in place that we can trust. The onus falls on the Welsh Government to urgently change gear on testing and tracing to allow us to move safely on to the next phase on the path to recovery."
