 What pronounced after our thanks for joining me once again, today, as usual, I want to share the very latest public health information and to set out the next steps in the Welsh Governments plan to relax alert level two measures. After many difficult and worrying weeks, I am pleased to be able to say the situation has improved significantly. Roedd rhaid i chi wedi cyfle'r cyfrifau ond rhaid, ond rhaid i chi'r cyfrifau omicron a'r rhaid i'r cyfrifau o'r cyfrifau o'r cyfrifau o'r cyfrifau o'r cyfrifau. Rhaid i chi'n rhaid i chi'ch cyfrifau a'r llefodun o'r ffantastig ymgwrsfaith vaccinations ydy'r unrhyw ymlaen i ymgylch yn ymgylch yn y cyfrifau. Rwy'n gwybod hiwn iawn bydd hwnna'n cwrn o'r ffordd mewn y flwyddyn ar y gydag o'r slydydd ar gyfer yma yn dweud. Mae'n ffawr o'r gwrdd gyda'r gwahodd o'r oeddi o'r oeddiol i'r cyhoedd yn gyfyrdd o Wales. Rwy'n gofyn o'r slydydd o'r gwrdd, oherwydd eich gwrdd o'r cyhoedd o'r cyhoedd o'r coronavirus o'r ddweud, arall am starving a your can see that just below 2500 cases per 100 thousand of the population a we now know that that happened early in January. Since then as the model that swansy university great for us would have suggested we have felly mae sy'n cael ei ddweud i fwy o'r nifer o'r ddau, a'i ddweud i fwy o rhai. Dydyn ni fyddir iawn dod newid o'r cais o'r 100,000 mlyneddol. ac i gael ymateb o fwy o'r rhai, oherwyddŷod o'r omicronion gyda'r unigau hyn yn yll way Жêl. Ond, i'n 500 o oed, y coronavirus eisiau o'r cymaint o'r cynnig o fodwyloyn o'r gwmplo. 5,500 iddyn nhw'n gwnaeth o gyflau'r gwahaniaeth yn y Llywodraeth. Rydych chi bod wedi cael ei chyfodd o gyngor, sy'n ddigonwch eich tro ond o'r Tyll Pcr sydd yn llwytech a fyddwch yn cyflodd o ddweudio penderfynnidol ar wneud. That's why we've looked at a wider range of indicators and as you will see in the next slide, the good news is, is that we see a similar trend in the results taken from the ONS infection survey. In the week ending the 15th of January, the ONS has estimated that levels of coronavirus are falling in Wales, England and Scotland. See that there at the end of the graph, Wales is the red line, so Wales has the lowest rate of infection anywhere in the United Kingdom. The rate of decline in Wales is the fastest anywhere in the United Kingdom and if you translate that into what's happening on the ground, it suggests that 1 in 25 people in Wales on the 15th of January were infected compared to around 1 in 20 in the other three nations and that gap represents thousands and thousands of people who otherwise would have fallen ill here in Wales. You can see very clearly on that slide Scotland in blue, Wales in red more or less together heading in the same direction and then a significant gap to England where there were fewer protections put in place. Now there's also some positive news about the impact of the wave on the NHS, hospitalisations for COVID-19 can lag behind community cases by a couple of weeks but we're now seeing falls day by day in the number of people admitted to hospital with COVID-19 and some gradual reductions in the overall number of patients suffering from coronavirus in our hospitals. But while we are over the worst, we are by no means yet out of the woods. There are still more than a thousand people in hospital with coronavirus and those thousand beds are putting additional pressures on the NHS and while staff absences and self isolation rates have fallen, they're still high, 7.3% of our staff are unable to be in work in the health service. And while we have now passed the peak of this wave of Omicron, very sadly Public Health Wales continues to support significant numbers of deaths from coronavirus. In this week alone more than 500 people have died with COVID-19 and that vividly demonstrates the human cost of this pandemic. You will hear a lot of talk at the moment about us having to live with the virus. But let us remember these 50 people and more than 9,000 other families across Wales who are living with the loss of a loved one. For them there is no easy way to move on from coronavirus and here in Wales we will never forget what has happened to them. Now we introduced level 2 measures on Boxing Day to help protect people to keep as many businesses as possible open and to prevent the NHS from being overwhelmed. We've been reviewing the public health situation every week to make sure we have the right protections in place to keep Wales safe during the Omicron crisis. Here last week I set out a plan carefully and gradually to relax the alert level 2 measures as the public health situation allows. Today of course I'm very pleased to confirm that we have already at 6 o'clock this morning moved to alert level 0 as planned for all outdoor activities and events. This means that there are now no caps on the number of people who can take part in outdoor activities, crowds can return to watch outdoor sporting events and outdoor hospitality can operate without additional protective measures such as the rule of six. The Covid pass will still be required for entry to those larger outdoor events and will continue to be required for entry to cinemas, theatres and concert halls when they are currently open. When we announced the alert level 2 measures we also put in place a £3 million spectator sports fund and that was to help those clubs and sporting venues affected while they had to play fixtures behind closed doors. The first awards of just over a million pounds have already been made and more awards now will follow. I can also confirm today that provided the public health situation continues on its current path we will move to alert level 0 for indoor events and premises from Friday 29th January a week from today. This will mean that night clubs will be able to reopen, working from home while still important will not be a legal requirement. Covid passes as I say will continue to be required. The self isolation rules for everyone who tests positive for Covid will remain in place as will the face covering rules in those indoor public places and on public transport. The next review of the coronavirus regulations including all the protective measures we have in place will then be in three weeks time. Now the arrival of that Omicron wave before Christmas was just another unpleasant twist in this long running pandemic. We have weathered this storm together in Wales by following the rules and all those measures which have kept us safe over the course of what is now nearly two years. But as I said earlier sadly the pandemic is not yet over, coronavirus is still with us but we can on the basis of what we have seen over recent days look forward to the future with renewed hope and with better and brighter days ahead of us. We are moving back to alert level 0 while retaining some of those day in day out protections that give us all confidence to lead our daily lives. Next week the education minister will be here at this podium on Tuesday to set out the next steps that will be there to go on protecting our staff and our students in schools. I want to thank everyone for all their efforts over these difficult weeks to help bring this Omicron wave to a swift end. I particularly want to thank all of those who have played their part in the fantastic vaccination programme which has done so much to boost our protection against this awful virus. Remember as I say every week it's never too late to be vaccinated here in Wales, whether that's your first dose, your second dose or your booster. Let's keep on keeping Wales safe together. Diolch o galon i chi gyd, as ever I'll now take questions and as ever all the answers will be broadcast live on the Welsh Government's own social media. Today the first person to ask a question is to go over to Jenny Rees at BBC Wales. Good afternoon, thank you. Given the cases are coming down so dramatically, what are the reasons why wait to remove those remaining restrictions particularly for things like indoor hospitality and if I can get that answer in Welsh as well please? Well Jenny, what we are doing is following the same pattern that we have throughout the pandemic, following the advice that we have from our chief medical officer and our scientists who always say if you're lifting measures you should do it step by step so that you can continue to observe the data. Make sure that what you're doing is not causing things to move in the wrong direction and then when you are satisfied that you can move move on to the next stage. We've known almost since the start of the pandemic that doing things outdoors is less risky than doing things indoors. That's why we've moved on outdoor activities and events today and we'll wait one more week in order to be sure that it is safe to lift those restrictions indoors for indoor hospitality and other events. It is that considered science led step by step approach that we think has helped to keep Wales safe throughout the pandemic and we don't intend to depart from what has been a successful formula for us. Mae'r ben i wneud i'w jyst i bwrwm lan yn yr un math ni wedi amdopi trwy'r pandemic i gyd, cam ar ôl cam, mynd ar ôl a gweynyddiaeth ac ar cyngor clinigol sy'n dod atoni. Ni'n gwybod, ni wedi gwybod trwy'r pandemic bron i gyd i wneud pethau mas yn yr awyr y gorad, yn safach na wneud pethau tyfawn, dyna pam ni'n symud heddi i codi cyfannu a ddau am pethau tyfawn. Bydd un othnos arall o'r data i bod yn glir mae'n a saf i wneud yr un peth i'n mynd lawr i'r level rhyfedd 0 pan i wneud pethau danddo. Dyna'r ffordd i wedi wneud pethau anghymru, yn ofalis, cam ar ôl cam, mae hwnna'n wedi helpu ni trwy'r pandemic i gyd i cadw ni gyd yn saf a dyna beth ni'n mynd i dal i wneud nawr ac yn y dyfodol. Thank you, and then how much longer will lateral flow tests remain free of charge? Again in Welsh as well please. Wel, we are well placed in Wales to have a strong supply of lateral flow tests. We used fewer of them earlier in the pandemic when we didn't feel that their use was likely to contribute to keeping people safe in Wales so our supply is secure. The funding decisions are ones made by the four nations together. It's very important for me to emphasise this is not a decision for the UK government to make alone and then to announce it to the rest of us. This is money that has been retained by the UK government that would otherwise be in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, which they spend on behalf of all of us. And let me say, as I've said many times, they have done a good job of securing a supply of tests, PCR tests and lateral flow tests. If the UK government is contemplating charging people for those tests in future, that is a decision that should be made by us all. I've seen no proposition of that sort. There's no piece of paper. There's no agenda item that tells me that that is imminent. But as I say, the key thing for me is that is a decision for the four governments collectively, not one that we hear about after it's been made. Well, I look at the UK government, and it's been a decision for the lateral flow tests. And we haven't decided yet on the level of the situation in the pandemic. So it's been a decision for it to be made. A beth pwysig i ddweud yw, os mae Penderfyniadau yn mynd i gael ei wneud, a i tynnu nôl o roi nhw'r rad ac amfym i bobl, mae hwnna yw Penderfyniad i'r pedau'r Llywodraethau a dros y Dynasynedig i wneud digillydd. Ar hyn o bryd, mae Llywodraeth y Dynasynedig yn cadw arian yn nôl o'r Alban, o'r Gymru, o'r Gogledd i'w arddon, i prynu profion ar anni i gyd, yma nhw wedi bod yn Llywodraeth nes, a neud hynny. Os mae nhw'n ishe awgrymi i symud o'r system presennol, a beth pwysig i'w, i cael pob un a ar y bwrdd digillydd, i weld y testiolaeth ac i trafod ymateb. Nid i feddwl, lan iddyn nhw ewer i'n ei defnyddiad a just roi ar ymateb i ni gyd. Jenny, thank you very much indeed over to Adrian Masters at ITV Wales. Thank you First Minister. The Prime Minister says he doesn't intend to renew the Coronavirus Act when it lapses on March 24. It's a UK Act and emergency powers have flown from that. Do your emergency powers rely on that Act? And if so, will they also lapse on March 25? And to be specific about that, does the legal requirement to self-isolate lapse in Wales on March 25? Well, Adrian, my recollection of all of this is that the regulations that we have made in Wales have not relied extensively on that UK Act, what we have used, are powers available to us under the Public Health Act of 1984. That's where we root the measures that we have put through the Senate on gatherings and events, on the Covid pass, on face coverings, the need for businesses to take reasonable measures to minimise the spread of Coronavirus on their premises and so on. So, I don't regard the fact that an Act may lapse in the UK at the end of March as having a significant impact on our ability to do the things we need to do because it's other legislation that we have relied on during the pandemic. Thank you. As you know, in England, most restrictions come to an end next week. Presumably, the UK government is acting on the same advice that you've received or similar advice to that which you've received because it's all pulled, as you've told us over the last couple of years. It hasn't come out of nowhere. In other words, then, have you received the same advice that it could be safe to ease more restrictions more quickly? No, the advice we have and we published it. You will have seen what the chief medical officer said last Friday in what our technical advisory group have said. They said that there was some scope for us to move ahead on lifting some of the measures where those measures related to activities outdoors but that we should continue to take a more precautionary approach to have a longer run of data before we could be confident it would be safe to lift those measures indoors and that is exactly the advice that we have followed. That's why you saw that staged process, outdoor events, restrictions being lifted today, hoping to do that this time next week for indoor measures. That's the advice that we have seen. As for the UK government, Adrian, let me just say, if anybody believes that their announcements this week about coronavirus were the result of a careful consideration of the science or because they had a well-worked out plan for what they were doing, I think that would be a very optimistic view indeed of the state of play in the UK government. Everything that is happening in Westminster at the moment is seen entirely through the lens of how can we get something else to be reported other than the dire difficulties that the Prime Minister has created for himself, and that's what I believe lies behind the announcements that we've seen this week. Adrian, thank you very much. Over to Dan Whitehead at Sky News. Thank you, First Minister. Just following on from some of the questions in regards to the easing of measures and specifically on the COVID pass, you'll know that it's being removed as a legal requirement in England next Thursday. Is it your aim, or at least your hope, that you will remove the necessity for the COVID pass in Wales at your next review in three weeks' time, and if not then when? Well, Dan, we will definitely review it as part of our review on the 10th of February, so it will be on the table together with other remaining measures at alert level zero. Three weeks is a very long time when you're dealing with coronavirus. If things continued to improve at the rate that we have seen them improve in the last week, then there would be an active debate about whether or not the COVID pass was still a proportionate part of the measures that we would want to have in place. But none of us can be certain that the very rapid falls of this week will continue over the next three weeks. So, we will do what we always do. We will look at the measures. We will ask for advice. The advice will be, given the public health position in Wales, is the COVID pass still a necessary and important part of our defences? If the answer is yes, we will continue with it. If the answer is, things have improved to the point where it's no longer a necessary part of those measures, then we'll respond to that advice as well. Thank you. Just on events in Westminster over the last week or so, you told Sky News this morning that the UK government is frozen because of party gates. Can you expand on what you mean by that? What impact it has on the Welsh people when it comes to non-devolved issues? And also, is the solution a change in leadership to move on from this? And lastly, should action in that case be taken before Sue Gray's report next week? Well, three questions there. Dan, so the first one is that everything that goes on in Whitehall and Westminster at the moment for the UK government is seen exclusively through the lens of how does this make a difference to the efforts that are being made to shore up the position of the Prime Minister. That's the only thing that any decision is being looked at. That's the lens that any decision is being taken through, and that means the government is simply not functioning. It is not functioning as a normal ordinary government discharging the responsibilities that fall to it in managing the economy, in taking the everyday decisions that governments have to make. This is a government that at the moment is simply not capable of doing the ordinary business of government in a competent and sensible way because it is overwhelmed by the headlines that surround the dreadful events that went on in Downing Street. I don't focus myself on the fate of a single individual because the Labour Party, my party's position on that, has been completely set out by the leader of the Labour Party, Sir Keir Starmer. We've come so close to the Sue Gray report now that I don't imagine that there will be any movement at Westminster until that report is available, so I'm not expecting there to be any dramatic moves before then, but that report is imminently expected. Dan, thank you very much. Over to Abby Wittig at Wales Online. Afternoon, First Minister. As you know, people will be making decisions next week about going to watch the Six Nations in pubs and at the stadium. What would your advice be to them before they do that and when they're there? The rules will allow that to happen, so they need to attend the game and hopefully by Friday of next week we'll be in a position to confirm that pubs and restaurants and other parts of hospitality will be fully open. So, there will be no legal reason why people should not make those decisions. We'll still ask people to think those decisions through, to do the sensible things, to take a lateral flow test before you go out to make sure that you're not going to be spreading the virus to others, to wear a mask if you are in crowded indoor public places. To think about the people you will be meeting and mixing with so that you're not putting yourself or other people at risk. But those are the questions that we have become very used to asking ourselves over the course of the pandemic. Coronavirus won't have gone away, so while those things will be possible, you'd still be asking people to go above them in a way that is responsible and which thinks about their own welfare and the welfare of others. You mentioned masks there and of course in Wales we will be required to wear masks indoors and pubs and so on. That's changing in England next week because you know and it will no longer be law but will be advisory only. When do you envisage that easing to happen in Wales? And when that does happen, will you continue to wear a mask? Well, we will review it on the 10th of February because it's part of those alert level zero measures. And as I said in an earlier answer, the question we asked for advice on is are those measures still necessary and proportionate given the state of the virus in Wales? And if the advice is, things are so good, you don't need to have them in place, we would respond to that advice. If the advice is, they still form an important part of the defence that we can mount together, then that is what we will do. I think there will be many people who on an advisory basis finding themselves in places where there are lots of other people and where we know the risks are greater because you're indoors and because ventilation may not be as good as it otherwise would be. I think there will be lots of people who will choose to go on wearing masks because it gives them confidence that they're keeping themselves safe and I would certainly consider that myself. Abby, thank you very much. Over to Caitlin Parr at LBC. Thank you, First Minister. Of course, you've suggested there that the UK government are no longer actually following science in England. They're just distracting away from what's going on in number 10 at the moment. But will there come a time in the near future in Wales where we balance the risk of what seems to be becoming a milder illness now after the vaccine rollout with our own ongoing challenges such as pressures put on public services and the economy in Wales being keeping these somewhat tighter restrictions in? Well, that is exactly the balance I think we try and strike all the time. Every time we make a set of decisions, we're trying to weigh up the different harms that come from coronavirus. They're the direct harms from it. They're in the indirect harms. People are not able to get treatments that they need in the health service because the health service has a thousand beds with people who are still ill from coronavirus today and the interests of the economy as well. These are always challenging balances. But here in Wales, we try our best to strike those balances with the science behind us and where we need to help sectors of the economy that are affected by those decisions than as we have in this month. 120 million pounds made available to help Welsh businesses because the trading conditions have been made more difficult for them because of the Omicron Wave. Thank you. And after everything that happened with Chester FC over Christmas, it seems to have all blown over now, but the Labour MP Chris Matheson suggested very little was actually achieved by the whole saga. And fans on both sides of the border seem to think it was just a way of political point scoring. Now, do they have a point? I'm afraid not. The rules are very plain to see. If you have a ground in Wales, then it is the Welsh rules that have to be followed. Chester is in that very unusual situation of being an English club where the road you walk up to get into the ground is in England, but the ground you play on turns out to be in Wales. Now, I always believe myself that there was just a sensible way of resolving that position. I'm very grateful to the club itself and to all those who got round the table and found a way through. And because from six o'clock this morning there are no longer any restrictions on people attending games where the game is in Wales and Chester's games are in Wales, then the problem has resolved itself. But Kate, thank you very much indeed. Over to Rod Minchin at PA. Good afternoon, First Minister. Are you surprised just two years after becoming Prime Minister that Boris Johnson finds himself embroiled in Partygate? No. If I'm truthful about it, the Prime Minister who is someone who's been sacked from two previous jobs for not telling the truth. I think the Times wrote an editorial on the eve of the December 2019 election pointing to the many flaws in the Prime Minister's record. And in many ways, I think what you see is his history catching up with him. Thank you. Were you set a date for all COVID-related restrictions, including mask wearings, self-isolation, COVID passes, all that sorts of thing, to be lifted given what England is now doing? No. Rod, I won't, because I'm the Prime Minister of Wales, not a horoscope writer for a daily newspaper. And it's simply impossible for anybody to peer into the future with coronavirus with the sort of definiteness that you were suggesting. What I will say is, of course, the Welsh Government wants as quickly and as safely as we can to lift the level of protections that we are all living with. But somewhere in the world today, the next variant of coronavirus could be brewing. Two and a half months ago, none of us had ever heard of the Omicron variant. And yet in that period, it has swept across our lives. And now, thankfully, is we hope sweeping out of it again. When people talk about freedom days and doing things where there's no reverse gear and so on, I think they're just flying in the face of the facts of this global pandemic. We want to do what you said as soon as we can and as soon as it's safe to do so. But am I going to offer people in Wales a set of artificial deadlines, peering into the future in a way that neither I nor anybody else can know what the circumstances at the time would be? I'm not going to do that. And part of the way, part of the reason why I think we have managed to sustain the confidence of the majority of people in Wales in the way that Welsh Government has acted, is because we haven't been willing to make headline-grabbing promises that we've no way of knowing whether we could keep. Rod, thank you very much. A draw i Owain Evans, newyddion. Diolch yn fawr, Prif Weinidog. Yn sgiliau'r newyddion cadarnhaol yma hefyd, pam ddim calguaredd ar y pasies COVID-19? Wel, achos mae nhw'n dal i wneud gwaith pwysig un i, a i cadw pobl yn ddiogel ac i roi hader i pobl i mynd mas, i mynd i letigarwch, i mynd i'r cinema ac yn y blaen, ac os mae pobl yn gwybod, mi'n pob un arall yn yr un cydestin wedi cael a aibrechu yn barod. Ni wedi weld ymchwil dros wrthnos dweitha. Ymchwil dros Europ i Gyd sy'n dangos mae'r pasies COVID wedi bod yn llwydiannus, mae'n nhw wedi helpu i warchod bywydau a mae'n wedi cadw busnesau ar agor hefyd. A pa mae hwnna'n rhan o'r apethau, ni'n gallu roi yn aile yng Nghymru, pa mae'r ton o coronavirus, yn dal dany, mae'n mynd lawr ond mae'n dal i fod ma, dydy'n ni ddim yn mynd i calguaredd ar hyn o bryd, ni'n mynd i dod nôl at y punkna ar y degfed o chwefrodd. Felly, rwy'n gweithio i'r ddweud y cyd-dweithio, mae'n gweithio i'r ddweithio i ddim yn gwybod, mae'n gweithio i'r pasies COVID yw yng Nghymru, fel y gallwn i'r gweithio yng Nghymru. Felly, rwy'n gweithio i'r pasies COVID wedi bod y fwrdd omicron yn gweithio i'r gweithio. Omicron yw'r gweithio i'r gweithio, rwy'n gweithio i'r gweithio i'r 2500 gweithio, am y gweithio i farewell i'r greg fin—y wild yn gan grain, handmade deal, y gweithio ar bod ni, yn gweithio i c cheers i ddim, at ddim yn ddweud i gweithio i ddim yn gweithio i syniad, 50. Ac roedd honio'r aww, yn gymrydd nad yw'n villeid wneud ar- stroke iechyd. Felly, termin o intensif, yn ddim yn granfyneth fforddm. Saet showcase o unigBei yn前ig oedd o hyry wedi cyfryd yma i circh tymais – ble wnae. Mae'r ffordd yn werth o'i gael i'ch colli, mae'n rhanoeddaeth bod yw'r gwy tranwyr ymantinell tîm Nall TWAT, yn sicr o'r cynnwys yn ein blaen. Mae hynny'n gweithio'n sÏf i wedi'u gwybod o'u gwirioneddau. Gweithio chwarae o'r cryfynidog a gwestiwn yn byw fach sydd i'n arall a'r hyd llynallau ddigon tebigh gan bod y dystioleth ynglyn â geffaith y Omicron ar y spydau ymbenodol, os nad e'n mythe un i edrych eto ar rywlau hunan yn nysu yng Nghymru, os dal angen i ni fod ni hunan yn nysu am ansaith yr nod? Wel ni yn edrych ar y pwnco hunan yn nysu heddi. Ni wedi cael adroddiad fewn o phhw, a ddoi, mae'r prif sefyddoedd meddagol yn ystyried ar adroddiad na heddi, a mae'r grwp tach, y grwp gwyddoniaeth, a sy'n dod digwydd mae'n nhw'n cwrth prynhawn ma, a mae'n nhw'n edrych ar yr un pwnco y gobaith yw, bydd Cangor oflaen gwyneddogion ar ddechrau othnos a nesa. Os mae'r Cangor yn dweud, mae'n ddiogel i symud o saith dŵarnod i pym dŵarnod o hunan yn nysu, dwi'n siŵr, dyna beth bydd gwyneddogion yn cytuno, ond dwi ddim wedi weld y Cangor eto, ond rwy'n gwybod, erbyn diwedd y diwethaeth i bydd y Cangorna ar gael a bydd y penderfyniadau cael o neud ar diwedd othnos nesa. Mae'n gweithio i ddim o'r cyd-dweithio a chyfodd y byddai i 7-5 ddesgau rhai, a dwi'n ddweud hynny'n ddweud o'r cyfrifio ar gyfan, mae'n dweud o'r cyfrifio a chyfoddol yng Nghymru, yng Nghymru, mae'n ddweud i daeth i ddweudio yw, dyma'r Cyfrifio Medigl, a dwi'n ddim ddim yn gwneud i ddweudio'r gweithio. Mae'n ddweud i ddweud i ddweud i ddweudio'r gweithio, gyda'r adeilad ar y cyfnod. Mae'n mynd i feddwl y dyfodol yn ôl, ac mae'n gweithio i'r ddweud. Yna'n gymhinoedd, mae'n dweud o gweithio'r adeilad, ond mae'n gweithio'n gweithio, ac mae'n sefydig yddi'r adeilad. Ond rwy'n yn fawr o'r adeilad, ond nid am y dyfodol, ond rwy'n gweithio'n gweithio, ond rwy'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n roedd yn eich gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio. If another variant is found in Wales, should night clubs, sports venues and the hospitality sector be ready to close down and restructure again, or do you have faith that the booster programme will protect the people of Wales? After the booster rollout is completed, do you see further vaccination being required from people here in Wales later this year? Llywethaeth Llywethaeth. Thank you. I think that the first question would be entirely on the nature of the virus. There are new variants of the virus appearing all the time in many parts of the world, most of them just disappear by themselves. i'r hyn o'r gwneud hwnnw, oherwydd yn ei gweithio'r gweithio'r gweithio'r llyfrfaith cyllid, a roeddwn yn ymddangos, mae'n gweithio'n cystadion hwnnw i'w gwahodd o'r gwneud yma, mae hynny'n dylunio'r gwneud yma, a'r hoffod wahanol iawn arddangos. Felly, rydyn ni'n gobl ydych chi'n gwneud hynny, o'r hollol sy'n bwysig hynny, ond y wneud ymddangos yn ystod am gwybod yn ymwybodol yn gweithio'r gwaith yn gyflawn. A'r gweithio'r f vaccinations yn gweithio'r gweithio'r gweithio. Yn gyflawn o'r hynny, nid yw'r ffyniad o'r ffyniadau, nid yw'r ffordd o'r ymddiadau a'u'n ddwygen i'n gwybod i gael bod yn ddwy'r gweithio, ond nid yw'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio. Llywodraeth, ond mae'n cael gweld gweld y tyd. Mae'n fawr ymlaen i'r bwysig o'i hunain. Felly mae'n rhaid i'w gweld. Felly mae'n rhaid i'r ddweud ar gyfer y cwestiwn. Felly, rydyn ni'n credu. Mae'n rhaid i'r cwestiwn ar gyfer y rolau i fynd i'r ymddangos yn y wales. Felly, rydyn ni'n cwestiwn i'r cyfddechrau'r yma'r awdd. Thank you. The JCVI will be looking at that topic. We know that the current sort of vaccines don't give you protection forever. They begin to wane after some weeks. The JCVI looked at whether it would be advisable to give another vaccine booster to very elderly people and very vulnerable people earlier in the month. They decided at that point that that wasn't advisable. I think Ben ystyn cael oedd os y gallodd gweithdoedd cyffredinol ar gyfer y gweithio yma, yw'r ffordd Trusta amddiannol iawn yn digwydd. Felly mae'n ei neud ddiwedd o'r cyfrifio, yn nhw, wedi'w cael y fflaenau'i cyffredinol ar gyfer y gweithio, yn nhw sefydliad i'n mynd ymlaen â'r cyfrifio. Ynddo mor hyn i'ch hyd a'r hyn yn ydych chi weld yn ymlaen ni'n fagol eich flwydd. Y ddweud yw'r gufnod y Llywodraeth Cymru yn golygu i ddweud o ymddangos ymddangos ymddangos ymddangos ymddangos ymddangos ti'n gweithio. Mae'r ysgol yn ymddangos? Mae'n dda i, mae'n dweud ymddangos eich cael eu ddweud o fath o'r fath o'r ddechrau. Mae'n oed yn ddech filoedd. Mae'n oed yn ei ddiweddio chi'n gweithio ymddangos fel ymddangos. If you're releasing people knowing that they are infectious, knowing that they will infect other people, then I think that is a very, very strange thing for a government to conclude that it will be willing knowingly to sanction that. Testing and self-isolation has been a really, really important part of the way in which we have tried to prevent the worst of coronavirus happening. I would need a lot of persuasion that we were in such a benign position that you could afford to do away with that protection that right across the United Kingdom and right across the world has been put in place to prevent coronavirus from being an even worse experience than it has. Lily, thank you. We're going over today to Tyrion Davies at CJS News. Thank you, First Minister. So, restrictions are being eased two weeks earlier than initially planned. Is this because of the Six Nations? No. Unfortunately, coronavirus has never heard of the Six Nations and the Omicron wave didn't adjust itself to take account of it. You saw the graphs earlier in my presentation. The reason we are able to move sooner than we thought is simply because the downturn in the wave came earlier than we originally expected. Thank you, and just another quick question. We've seen some concerns over the past few weeks about waiting times in A&E, especially in south Wales. Are there any plans in place to deal with these waiting times or to ease pressure on the NHS? Well, the single biggest thing we can do is to bear down on coronavirus because it is the pressures that coronavirus are placing on the system that has made accident and emergency departments such a challenge because the front door of the hospital is always open. It's one of the key characteristics of our NHS. It never turns anybody away. If you are ill and turn up at an A&E department and wait, you will be seen. The problem they have is at the back end of the hospital, we're not able to discharge people rapidly enough to create capacity within the hospital for people to flow through the system as is necessary. The single most important thing we can do is to continue to reduce the impact of coronavirus on our hospital system because that's the thing that will make the most difference in A&E departments today. The pressures there are very real and the staff that we are relying on to look after people are staff who have been doing this throughout the pandemic and they are absolutely understandably exhausted by that experience. So, there is no easy answer to it, but bearing down on coronavirus is the single most immediate thing we can do to relieve pressure in A&E but right across the system as a whole. Tyrion, diolch yn fawr. Thank you very much. Draw i cable Darwin espadwarec. Diolch yn handa prif Weinidog. Wrth ystyriaeth y ffordd mae'r pandemig wedi datblygu hi dyn nhw, ydych chi'n rhaid gweld angen mwy o gofyniadau ac chi ail cyflwyno brechlynau atgyfnerthu y gael adnesol? Wel, alla i ddim ddweud, wrth gwrs mae'r dynnu'n dal i fod yn canol y gael adnesol a mae'n amhosibu unrhyw perso'n Edrych ymlaen at y gael adnesa ac yn gallu bod yn sicr am beth sy'n mynd i digwydd. Y gobaith ew trwy popeth ni wedi dysgu trwy'r rhaiglen brech chi sydd wedi bod Dany allwn i amdopu gyda'r Cymru sydd hefyd mynd nôl a'r cyfanyadau o'r Dany yn gengharach yn pandemig. Ond fel wedais i panodd ni'n ateb i un o cwestiynau eraill, dydyn ni'n neb yn gobod am beth sy'n digwydd dros y byd gyda'r amriwi olyn a newid. So mae'n rhaid i ni paratoi am mwyn ag un posibiliadau am y dyfodol un ble allwn i cariom lan mwynalau hef cyfanyadau ond lwyb i'r arall ble os mae rhywbeth ni ddim yn dysgwl yn digwydd allwn i mynd nôl a neid popeth ni'n wedi neid ac os ni neidau i warchod bwydau ac i ychydig ychydig ar gwasanaeth iecheg yn edlaethol. Mae'n ei ddaliad o'r cefanyddio i chi gan gwasanaeth ei wneud yn cofianfod i'ch yn gallu un pwysydd yn y dyfodol sydd, ac y cwrdd canol wedi cael cael eu chyflogau mewn i'r cyflogau. Fe ydych chi'n eisiau'n gwneud yn y pethau sydd i chi'n gweithio i chi ychydig unrhyw ar gyd, ac efallai'ch amsgolau i chi gael beth sydd yn gweithio fwyntau hynny. Rwy'n rhaid i chi'n ddim yn gweithio i chi'n ddod i'ch funsch yn awr. but we have to prepare for more than one future, one future in which, because of everything we have learned, because of the success of vaccination, we are able to manage coronavirus without resorting to the sorts of measures that have been necessary in the last two winters. But the possibility that further unexpected surprises—new variants—could yet emerge is real. Therefore we have to prepare for the fact that we may yet need to put in place some of the measures that have helped to keep people safe and to protect the NHS when we've seen the most difficult days over the past period. Diolch, ac yn dilyn yn yw y ddion wrthnos yma, bod eilod syneddol Cadewadol yn San Steffan wedi'i croes i'r ffawr ac yn mynd o'r blaid lafyr, a fydd ych chi'n croesawu eilod Cadewadol yma eich ardi i'r mynd o'r chi? Wel, allai i ddim weld neb yn y partig Cadewadol yma yn Cymru yn neud ar un peth, wrth gwrs mae pleid lafyr, ni'n eglus eang a ni wedi croesawu bobl o'r pleid Cymru ac o'r cydwadwyr ac o'r Llybdem's hefyd yn y gorffennol, dwi ddim yn weld pleid lafyr bobl yn mynd i neu wedi ei feddwl anghymru i'r yr un yn yr un math. Ceir eib aski mi wedi ffollowi'r croeswyr yma y flwr o'r Llywodraeth Cadewadol yn Llywodraeth Cadewadol yn Llywodraeth Cadewadol yn Llywodraeth Cadewadol, ceir eib diwethaf yn fawr o'r Tom Magner at Caerersworld Live? Thank you very much indeed, First Minister. I'd like to look at the many viewers who await release of COVID-19 measures, they tell me, with anxiety and fear. Do you accept that there is a sizable section of Welsh society, the forgotten thousands that you would like to call them, that kept themselves indoors for nearly two years now and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future to protect their health and that of their loved ones, no matter what easiness you announced, interested in your reasoning? Well, I've got two of them living in my own house, Tom, so I am very well aware of the fact that there are many people in Wales who, because of vulnerabilities in their own health and circumstances, are anxious when they see the level of protections being lifted across society. The noise is most often made by people who would like us to go further and faster, but tests of opinion in Wales always tell me that there are more people in Wales who are anxious that we are going too quickly than there are people who think we are going too slowly. That's not just a Welsh phenomenon, I think there was a YouGov poll out yesterday that showed across the United Kingdom more people think we should keep protections in place for longer than we should rush to lift them. So I am acutely aware of the anxieties that that causes people. It's why in Wales we will retain, even at alert level zero, those basic protections of mask wearing in crowded places, COVID passes to places where lots of people meet and will continue to urge people to do all those simple things we've learnt, not simply because it keeps ourselves safe, but because it is a simple courtesy to other people whose own health may be more vulnerable than our own. Thank you very much indeed for that answer. I think our viewers will certainly be reassured by your personal nature of understanding this issue. Today sufferers of long COVID are raising issues with a group called Independent Sage with experts saying that the issue of long COVID isn't really being addressed. What can you tell us about the situation in Wales? Well, I know that it is a topic that our own health minister, Elinod Morgan, has taken a particular interest in. The approach we have embarked upon in Wales is not one of creating a small number of specialist centres because in Wales those are often very remote where people will live. And if you are suffering from long COVID, then long journeys are quite certainly not what you would be wishing to contemplate. Our approach has been to try to strengthen the ability of primary care to respond to people who suffer from long COVID. And then of course to have recourse to some more specialist services where GPs feel they need further advice or expert guidance. So that's the essential approach we've taken trying to strengthen services close to people as much as we can and not to expect. We want the service to go to the person, rather than the person to go to the service, particularly given the nature of this illness. Tom, before I leave you, I just wanted to tell you that I did make the enquiries that I said that I would about the register. There is a plan to publish the register on a mandatory basis in October. And people are looking at the moment, at the second point you raised, which is whether it is possible to use data in the patient record to be able to populate that register. So there were some things I wanted to make sure I passed back to you on that. Many thanks First Minister. Thank you too. Over to Alan Evans at Sinelli online. Thank you First Minister. Your job's there at the Prime Minister, reminiscent of Muhammad Ali. We've seen the chaos in recent weeks and months really surrounding COVID rules with the UK Government. In answer to a recent question about the relationship between the UK Government and Welsh Government, you said we now need a UK Government capable of discharging its responsibilities rather than one paralysed by the unfolding crisis of a deeply dysfunctional downing street. You're also on record as saying you're not in favour of independence and have said that you're convinced that being part of a larger nation in the United Kingdom was in the best interest of Wales. But you also say in the reforming our union document that devolution requires consistent constructive cooperation and collaboration between governments of the UK if we are to deliver the best possible outcomes for citizens and to preserve and strengthen the union. Regrettably you say this has not been our experience since we published the original reforming our union in 2019. My question is if you are not confident in the relationship and the mechanisms of Westminster, as you've alluded to this morning as well, is it not time to call for a referendum on independence for Wales to let the people decide and if you were to facilitate a referendum and the vote was yes, would you take Wales back into the EU? Well, these are very profound questions, but thank you for asking them. Look, I absolutely recognise that for people like me who believes that Wales is better off in the United Kingdom and the United Kingdom is better off for having Wales in it, then having a Government that is so deeply dysfunctional makes that argument harder to make. But I think what that does is to confuse the temporary occupation of the seats of power by an incompetent group of people for the long term interests that Wales has in having a successful United Kingdom. I said before the Senate election that if a party were to win a majority of seats in an election on a manifesto that said they would be a referendum on independence, then of course that referendum independence should be held and the people in Wales are entitled to make their own decision on their own future. I've never believed anything else. The truth of the matter is that the election was won very convincingly by parties who didn't have that in their manifesto and the one party that did have it in their manifesto lost ground rather than gained ground in the election. So it's absolutely properly a live debate. I understand why the current context draws it to the surface again, but for me I think you've got to go in an election in your manifesto and if you win the election that's when a referendum is legitimate. You've said as well that we've seen the good, the bad and the ugly from Downing Street during the pandemic. You've said the positive examples stand out because we are small islands in a sea of hand to mouth short termism. You also said that the pandemic has only sharpened the need for proper debate about the future of the UK. The machinery which is intended to bear the weight of intergovernmental relations has been entirely absent. Without a single meeting of the GMC since the current Prime Minister took office nearly two years ago. Does the First Minister take the view that is not so much the civil service at Westminster but a lack of effort and attention to the job in hand from the Prime Minister that is to blame and despite criticisms over your cautious approach, you have led in protecting the interests of the people of Wales with a partner best described as divorced with a restraining order in place and cuts to payments to the family. Well, thank you for that. Look, there was a UK poll this week that showed more people in England believed that the approach taken in Wales was to be preferred than there were people in England who preferred the English approach. And that is pretty remarkable given that they don't hear about us all that often and when they do, they normally hear about us because we're being attacked by some right wing politician or press outfit. Let me just put one bit of good news on the table, which is that the intergovernmental review has now finally been agreed. It's taken four years to do it, but it does offer us a much better prospect for the conduct of relations between the four nations in the United Kingdom. We will have a rule based approach. There will be independent abilities to challenge some of the decisions that are made. The meetings will circulate around the United Kingdom. There will be chaired by a minister in the nation where the meeting is being held. So instead of all the cards being held in the hands and tucked close to the chest of the UK government, the new arrangements will be much more like the ones that we set out in reforming our union. Having words on a page is one thing. How you make them work depends upon, you know, a culture and a willingness and a commitment by all four governments to it. Wales, we will certainly commit ourselves and then we will look to the UK government to live up to the words on the page to which they have now committed themselves. Alan Dygfawr, finally today over to Harry Henson at that's TV South Wales. Thank you. Good afternoon, Minister. Emma Swan's MP Grant Davis has called for measures to be taken to protect clubgoers from being spiked. He's suggesting that everyone should be searched and scanned before entering premises. Now that nightclubs will be reopening in Wales, is this something that the government will consider looking into? I've not seen that. I need to look carefully at what Geraint has said. It sounds to me and Harry, I'm just relying on what you've said to me, but that is more a matter for the non-devolved services, you know, the police and so on. People deserve to be protected from the harm that spiking drinks can do, absolutely. Whether that is the right series of measures, I probably need to have a bit more time and a bit more time. I don't have a chance to look at them and think them through. Thank you, and you mentioned the explanation of the police and things like that. But would the government consider a support package to kind of help out and especially considering the night time industry has been under a lot of strain recently? Well, the £120 million that I mentioned earlier is absolutely available to people in the night time economy. One final point I'd make about it is that when we devised the £120 million, it was on the basis that these restrictions would go on for longer. We didn't realise that we'd be in the position we're in of being able to lift them when we can, and the money was intended to support businesses that were closed right up until the 14th of February. Now we have decided not to withdraw any of that money. We're going to make the whole £120 million still available because we recognise that it will still take a bit of time for those businesses to get back to full capacity and full functioning, and so we will go on supporting them even though they'll be no longer closed, but back open, we hope, as from Friday of next week. Harry, thank you very much indeed. Diolch yn fawr i pob un.