The Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 5) (Wales) (Amendment) (No. 7) Regulations 2021

Made: at 3.43 p.m. on 9 April 2021

Laid before Senedd Cymru: at 6.00 p.m. on 9 April 2021

Coming into force: 12 April 2021

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.

Title and coming into force

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• (1) The title of these Regulations is the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 5) (Wales) (Amendment) (No. 7) Regulations 2021.

• (2) These Regulations come into force immediately before the start of the day on 12 April 2021.

Amendment of the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 5) (Wales) Regulations 2020

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• (1) The Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (No. 5) (Wales) Regulations 2020[^f00002] are amended as follows.

• (2) In regulation 4(6A), for “11 April” substitute “25 April”.

• (3) After Part 3 insert—

(14A) (1) No person may, without a reasonable excuse— (a) leave Wales to travel to a destination outside the common travel area, or (b) travel to, or be present at, an embarkation point for the purpose of travelling from there to a destination outside the common travel area. (2) For the purposes of paragraph (1), a person has a reasonable excuse if— (a) the purpose for which the person is travelling to a destination outside the common travel area is reasonably necessary and there is no reasonably practicable alternative; (b) one of the circumstances in paragraph (4) applies. (3) Examples of purposes for which it may be reasonably necessary for a person to travel to a destination outside the common travel area include— (a) obtaining or providing medical assistance; (b) avoiding illness, injury or other risk of harm; (c) working or providing voluntary or charitable services; (d) meeting a legal obligation, including attending court or satisfying bail conditions, or participating in legal proceedings; (e) providing, receiving or accessing care or assistance, including childcare or relevant personal care within the meaning of paragraph 7(3B) of Schedule 4 to the Safeguarding of Vulnerable Groups Act 2006[^f00003], where the person receiving the care is a vulnerable person; (f) in relation to children who do not live in the same household as their parents, or one of their parents, continuing existing arrangements for access to, and contact between, parents and children, and for the purposes of this paragraph, “parent” includes a person who is not a parent of the child, but who has parental responsibility for, or who has care of, the child; (g) moving home; (h) undertaking activities in connection with the purchase, sale, letting or rental of residential property; (i) accessing or receiving educational services. (4) The circumstances referred to in paragraph (2)(b) are that the person is— (a) providing or receiving emergency assistance; (b) attending a solemnization of a marriage, formation of a civil partnership or alternative wedding ceremony— (i) as a party to the marriage, civil partnership or wedding, or (ii) as the carer of a party to the marriage, civil partnership or wedding; (c) attending a funeral— (i) as a person responsible for arranging the funeral, (ii) if invited by a person responsible for arranging the funeral, or (iii) as the carer of a person attending; (d) an elite athlete and is travelling for the purposes of training or competition; (e) providing coaching or other support to an elite athlete, or providing support at— (i) an elite sporting event, or (ii) a sporting event taking place outside the common travel area; (f) travelling to vote in an election. (5) Paragraphs (1) and (2) do not apply to a person referred to in Schedule 5A. (6) In this regulation, and in regulations 14B and 29— (a) “the common travel area” has the same meaning as in the Immigration Act 1971[^f00004]; (b) “embarkation point” means an international terminal or any other place in Wales from which a person may travel to a destination outside the United Kingdom. (14B) (1) A person (“P”) who is present at an embarkation point for the purpose of travelling from there to a destination outside the common travel area must, if requested by an enforcement officer, provide the officer with a completed international travel declaration form. (2) The international travel declaration form must be in the form published by the Welsh Ministers[^f00005] and include the following information— (a) P’s full name, (b) P’s date of birth and nationality, (c) P’s passport number, or travel document reference number (as appropriate), (d) P’s home address, (e) P’s destination, (f) the reason P is travelling to a destination outside the common travel area, (g) a statement that P certifies that the information P provides is true, and (h) the date on which the declaration is completed. (3) Where P is travelling with a child or person who lacks capacity (“C”), for whom P has responsibility, P must, if requested by an enforcement officer, provide the officer with a completed international travel declaration form relating to C. (4) The obligation in paragraph (1) does not apply— (a) to C, or (b) to a person referred to in Schedule 5A. (5) In this regulation, a person lacks capacity if they lack capacity, within the meaning of section 2 of the Mental Capacity Act 2005[^f00006], to complete the international travel declaration form.

• (4) After Part 4 insert—

(18A) (1) A person responsible for carrying out or facilitating an activity which involves participating in a gathering for the purposes of persuading or dissuading any person to vote in a particular manner in an election must— (a) take all reasonable measures to minimise the risk of— (i) any person involved in the activity being exposed to coronavirus, and (ii) the spread of coronavirus by any such person, and (b) in taking those measures, have regard to any guidance about them issued by the Welsh Ministers. (2) The measures to be taken under paragraph (1)(a)— (a) must include taking all reasonable measures to ensure that a distance of 2 metres is maintained between any persons participating in the gathering (except between members of the same household or a carer and the person assisted by the carer), and (b) may include taking other measures which limit close face-to-face interaction and maintain hygiene such as— (i) limiting the number of persons participating in the gathering; (ii) wearing face coverings; (iii) limiting the number of persons handling leaflets or other materials. (3) The Welsh Ministers— (a) may revise guidance issued under paragraph (1)(b), and (b) must publish the guidance (and any revisions).

• (5) In regulation 25(2), in the words before sub-paragraph (a), after “regulations” insert “14B, 18A,”.

• (6) In regulation 27(1), before sub-paragraph (a) insert—

(za) regulation 18A(1),

• (7) For regulation 29 substitute—

(29) (1) Paragraph (2) applies where an enforcement officer has reasonable grounds for suspecting a person is about to leave Wales to travel to a destination outside the common travel area, other than from an embarkation point, in contravention of regulation 14A(1)(a). (2) The enforcement officer may direct the person not to leave Wales. (3) Paragraph (4) applies where an enforcement officer has reasonable grounds for suspecting a person has left Wales to travel to a destination outside the common travel area, other than from an embarkation point, in contravention of regulation 14A(1)(a). (4) The enforcement officer may— (a) direct the person to return to Wales; (b) return the person to Wales. (5) Paragraph (6) applies where an enforcement officer considers— (a) that a person (“P”) is present at an embarkation point for the purposes of travelling from there to a destination outside the common travel area, and (b) that the requirement in regulation 14B(1) applies to P and P has failed to comply with the requirement. (6) The enforcement officer may direct P to complete an international travel declaration form and may specify a time by which the form is to be completed. (7) Paragraph (8) applies where— (a) an enforcement officer considers that the restriction in regulation 14A(1) applies in the case of a person (“P”) who is present at an embarkation point, and (b) P either— (i) fails to comply with the requirement in regulation 14B(1), and does not complete the international travel declaration form when directed to do so under paragraph (5), or (ii) provides the enforcement officer with a completed international travel declaration form which the officer considers does not disclose a reasonable excuse. (8) The enforcement officer may— (a) direct P to leave the embarkation point without leaving the United Kingdom; (b) remove the person from the embarkation point.

• (8) For regulation 38 substitute—

(38) (1) A person who contravenes a requirement in— (a) regulation 14A, or (b) regulation 14B, commits an offence. (2) It is an offence for a person to provide false or misleading information on an international travel declaration form under regulation 14B where the person knows the information is false or misleading, or is reckless as to whether the information is false or misleading. (3) Paragraph (2) does not apply where the false or misleading information is given for reasons of national security.

• (9) In regulation 48(1), after “regulation 49,” insert “49A,”.

• (10) After regulation 49 insert—

(49A) Where a fixed penalty notice is issued in respect of an alleged offence under regulation 38(1)(a), the amount of the fixed penalty is £5000.

• (11) In regulation 53(1)(c), after “49,” insert “49A,”.

• (12) In regulation 57(1)

• (a) after sub-paragraph (d) insert—

(da) “close contact service” means a service which is ordinarily provided by any of the following— (i) hair salons and barbers; (ii) nail and beauty salons including tanning and electrolysis services; (iii) body piercings and tattooing services;

• (b) omit sub-paragraph (t).

• (13) In Schedule 1, omit Part 3.

• (14) In Schedule 2, omit Part 3.

• (15) In Schedule 3, omit Part 3.

• (16) In Schedule 3A—

• (a) in paragraph 1—

• (i) in sub-paragraph (6), after paragraph (b) insert—

(ba) participating in a gathering for the purposes of obtaining or providing— (i) medical or health services, including services relating to mental health, and services provided by dentists, opticians, optometrists, audiologists, chiropodists, chiropractors, osteopaths, physiotherapists and acupuncturists; (ii) a close contact service;

• (ii) omit sub-paragraph (7);

• (b) in paragraph 3, omit sub-paragraph (7);

• (c) omit Part 3;

• (d) in paragraph 7(2), after paragraph (c) insert—

(ca) the use of premises for any purpose as may be requested or authorised by the Welsh Ministers or a local authority;

• (e) in paragraph 9—

• (i) in the heading, omit “and crematoriums”;

• (ii) in sub-paragraph (1)—

• (aa) for “paragraphs 19 and 20” substitute “paragraph 19”;

• (bb) for “sub-paragraphs (2) and (3)” substitute “sub-paragraph (2)”;

• (iii) in sub-paragraph (2)(b), for “to provide public services upon the request of” substitute “for any purpose as may be requested or authorised by”;

• (iv) omit sub-paragraph (3);

• (v) omit sub-paragraph (4)(b);

• (vi) omit sub-paragraph (5);

• (f) in paragraph 10—

• (i) in sub-paragraph (1), for “21 to 47” substitute “24 to 44”;

• (ii) in sub-paragraph (3), for paragraph (a) substitute—

(a) listed in paragraph 39 or 42 (spas and indoor sports and fitness facilities) may open its premises to the public, but only for the purposes of providing, by appointment, close contact services or services provided by dentists, opticians, optometrists, audiologists, chiropodists, chiropractors, osteopaths, physiotherapists and acupuncturists;

• (g) in paragraph 11—

• (i) in sub-paragraph (1)(a), for “48 to 66” substitute “51 and 52”;

• (ii) for sub-paragraph (1)(c) substitute—

(c) premises used as a venue for the solemnisation of a marriage, formation of civil partnership or alternative wedding ceremony, or the celebration of such an event, may open to the public for the purposes of enabling a person to visit the premises, by appointment, with a view to booking the premises for the solemnisation of a marriage, formation of civil partnership or alternative wedding ceremony, or for the celebration of such an event;

• (h) omit paragraphs 20 to 23;

• (i) omit paragraphs 45 to 50;

• (j) omit paragraphs 53 to 66.

• (17) In Schedule 4—

• (a) omit Part 3;

• (b) in paragraph 9—

• (i) in the heading, omit “and crematoriums”;

• (ii) in sub-paragraph (1)—

• (aa) for “paragraphs 19 and 20” substitute “paragraph 19”;

• (bb) for “sub-paragraphs (2) and (3)” substitute “sub-paragraph (2)”;

• (iii) omit sub-paragraphs (3) and (4);

• (c) omit paragraph 20.

• (18) In Schedule 5, paragraph 2—

• (a) in the words before paragraph (a), for “11 April” substitute “25 April”;

• (b) omit paragraphs (d) and (g).

• (19) After Schedule 5 insert—