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Welsh Statutory Instruments
2020 No. 867 (W. 189)
Public Health, Wales
The Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 2) (Wales) (Amendment) (No. 5) Regulations 2020
Approved by Senedd Cymru
Made
at 2.50 p.m. on 14 August 2020
Laid before Senedd Cymru
at 5.50 p.m. on 14 August 2020
Coming into force
17 August 2020
The Welsh Ministers make the following Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 45C(1) and (3)(c), 45F(2) and 45P of the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984 F1.
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 Welsh Ministers consider that the amendments made by these Regulations are proportionate to what they seek to achieve, which is a public health response to that threat.
In accordance with section 45R of that Act the Welsh Ministers are of the opinion that, by reason of urgency, it is necessary to make this instrument without a draft having been laid before, and approved by a resolution of, Senedd Cymru.
F11984 c. 22. Sections 45C, 45F and 45P were inserted by section 129 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (c. 14). The functions under these sections are conferred on “the appropriate Minister”. Under section 45T(6) of the 1984 Act the appropriate Minister, as respects Wales, is the Welsh Ministers.
Title and coming into forceE+W
1. The title of these Regulations is the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 2) (Wales) (Amendment) (No. 5) Regulations 2020 and they come into force on 17 August 2020.
Commencement Information
I1Reg. 1 in force at 17.8.2020, see reg. 1
Amendment of the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 2) (Wales) Regulations 2020E+W
2.—(1) The Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 2) (Wales) Regulations 2020 F2 are amended as follows.
(2) In regulation 12—
(a)in the words at the beginning of paragraph (2), after “premises,” insert “ or the spread of coronavirus by those who have been at the premises ”;
(b)at the end of paragraph (2A), insert—
“(c)collecting contact information from each person at the premises or, in relation to persons from the same household, from one of them, and retaining it for 21 days for the purpose of providing it to the Welsh Ministers or to a public health officer upon either's request.”;
(c)after paragraph (4), insert—
“(5) In this regulation—
(a)“contact information”, in relation to a person at the premises, means the person's name and information sufficient to enable the person to be contacted, to inform them that they may have been exposed to coronavirus at the premises (including a telephone number and the date and time at which the person was at the premises);
(b)“public health officer” has the same meaning as in paragraph 3(2)(c) of Schedule 21 to the Coronavirus Act 2020 F3.”.
(3) In regulation 20—
(a)omit paragraph (3A);
(b)in paragraph (4), for “Any other” substitute “ An ”.
(4) In Schedule 5, in paragraph 5(6), for “compensate the person responsible for the premises” substitute “ pay compensation ”.
F2S.I. 2020/725 (W. 162), as amended by the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 2) (Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/752 (W. 169)), the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 2) (Wales) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/803 (W. 176)), the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 2) (Wales) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/820 (W. 180)) and the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 2) (Wales) (Amendment) (No. 4) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/843 (W. 186).
Commencement Information
I2Reg. 2 in force at 17.8.2020, see reg. 1
Savings for offences and penalties in relation to prior actsE+W
3. Regulations 20 and 21 of the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 2) (Wales) Regulations 2020 continue to have effect in relation to any offence committed, or reasonably believed to have been committed, before the amendments made by these Regulations came into force as if those amendments had not been made.
Commencement Information
I3Reg. 3 in force at 17.8.2020, see reg. 1
Mark Drakeford
First Minister, one of the Welsh Ministers
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.
These Regulations amend the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 2) (Wales) Regulations 2020 (the “principal Regulations”). The amendments—
specify that collecting contact information from people for the purpose of informing those who may have been exposed to coronavirus is a “reasonable measure” that may need to be taken, depending on the circumstances, under regulation 12 of the principal Regulations;
clarifying that the maximum penalty for breach of the requirement to close premises after a premises closure notice has been issued, under paragraph 3(1) of Schedule 5 to the principal Regulations, is a fine (and not imprisonment).
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.