Virus message sent out to local volunteers

Robyn Lovelock, the town councillor who chairs Llangollen Cittaslow Committee, has sent the following message to local community groups:

"Dear Llangollen Community Groups, 

"Despite the difficult times we’re in, it is remarkable to see how this community is pulling together through existing and new groups, particularly ensuring that those who are vulnerable and/or isolated are being taken care of. 

"For those groups already involved in a response with your members (e.g. helping with food, medicines, transport etc) please see below a request from Denbighshire Voluntary Services to complete this spreadsheet with basic information about the services you're providing so they can identify gaps and support needed. If you feel unsure how to do that or have any questions, please let me know and I can help.

"The Cittaslow Committee of the Town Council will be meeting this evening (6pm Wednesday) to consider how it can best support over these coming weeks. We will be meeting by Skype with representatives of any town group welcome to join the call if you have questions you would like to raise. If so, please let me know and I'll send you the call-in link.

"It seems like this situation may continue for some time so lets consider what we can put in place now to come out the other end stronger than ever before.

"See the Llangollen Coronavirus Help Group, Town Council and Cittaslow Facebook pages for further information about support available. Please also advise your members to be cautious of scams online, by telephone and door to door with cons offering tests, treatment etc." 

From DCVC

Dear Friends and Colleagues,


We wanted to update you about our emerging plans in view of the rapid escalation of events linked to COVID-19.

DVSC will continue to provide support at this important time in line with our mission and core purpose.

In a climate where fear is spreading fast, we want to spread a message of kindness, hope and community spirit. We are heartened by the voluntary action and community spirit through Denbighshire and elsewhere that we are already seeing with online groups forming on Facebook in addition to existing local volunteer groups and third sector organisations. This voluntary action and community spirit is going to be critical in the days, weeks and months that lie ahead. Thank you for stepping up as #DenbighshireVolunteers.

We are currently putting in place plans for a COVID-19 Community Volunteers Response working with our local statutory partners, Third Sector Support Wales partners, Welsh Government  and the voluntary and community sector in Denbighshire. We will provide an update on our plans later in the week.  We are also mobilising to see what funds we can muster to enable volunteer expenses to be paid at this challenging time. Our community grants round will open imminently to support voluntary action. We would be grateful if you share the plans or information that you are aware of with us so we can act as the coordinating hub and guide people to resources and networks close to them.  To ensure we collate all necessary information, can you please fill out the spreadsheet. You can then send us the list and information via email covid19@dvsc.co.uk

Following the statement made by the government on Monday, all DVSC events will be cancelled with immediate effect and for the foreseeable future. This includes our Spring Funding Fair scheduled for March 25 and the #DenbighshireVolunteers Third Sector Network meeting planned for April 1st. This will allow us time to focus all our resource on preparing for the COVID-19 Volunteer Community Response.

We believe it is important to give people the possibility to share concerns. Therefore our community hub in the heart of Ruthin remains open Monday to Friday 9am to 4pm  and we are available to provide support and advice as usual over the phone 01824 702 441 or via email covid19@dvsc.co.uk.

We also want to ensure people are enabled to make informed choices so we will be sharing important announcements from Public Health Wales and Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board through social media - Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn - and our weekly NewsFlash as appropriate. We advise you to  follow Public Health Wales guidance on how to play your role in delaying the spread of the virus and encourage everyone to follow Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board guidance on what to do if you are presenting symptoms. If in doubt self-isolate. In line with Public Health Wales guidance we advise the elderly and vulnerable and their carers to take all necessary steps to protect themselves and in turn we ask everyone to think how you can best protect the elderly and the vulnerable.

DVSC as a charity has been in existence for over twenty years, supporting voluntary action in the communities of Denbighshire. Our small team is committed to working in partnership with all stakeholders to ensure working together we develop a COVID-19 Volunteer Community response that is safe, effective and bolsters community spirit. Let's work together to meet the COVID-19 challenge.

If you are young, healthy and fit to volunteer please contact us: covid19@dvsc.co.uk or call 01824 702 441.

If you are already organising something or have plans in development (small or large) please contact us. To ensure we collate all necessary information, can you please fill out the spreadsheet. You can then send us the list and information via email covid19@dvsc.co.uk

If you have news to share let us know and we will share the information via social media and through our weekly NewsFlash.

Former mayor says health centre should be used to treat virus patients

A former county councillor and town mayor says empty parts of Llangollen Health Centre (pictured) should be used for treating coronavirus patients.

Stuart Davies makes his suggestion in an open letter to the local Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board and Welsh Ministers - with a copy to Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

He says: "You are in charge of the Betsi and the Welsh NHS. We need you to take action now. 

"I watched the Andrew Marr show where the national government is talking about utilising private hospital and hotel rooms to treat Corona virus patients.

"We have here in Llangollen a brand new medical centre, the Welsh Government closed our cottage hospital to build it. 

"They promised us a minor injury unit, an in-house dental centre, resident social services etc etc. None of these have happened. 

"Despite the excellent work of the staff there on behalf of the community, my view is that the centre is vastly under utilised, loads of other members of the public share that view. I have consistently asked for beds to be provided in it.

"If we are going to be short of beds, then why don't they put some beds in some of those rooms that were supposed to be for dentists, MIUs and Social Services?

"I understand that the top floor is under-utilised. 

"I am calling on this Welsh Government to do the right thing, get their backsides in to gear and provide extra beds NOW here in Llangollen before it is too late."

A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “The Health Minister announced a range of measures to prioritise NHS Wales resources on Friday. We will be announcing further measures to help and protect people.”

Message to constituents from area's MP

Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes has sent the following message to constituents:

The Chancellor of the Exchequer has announced £330 billion of government backed loan and credit today, with the Treasury prepared to do more if this is not sufficient. Here are some of the details:

• Mortgage lenders will offer 3 month mortgage holiday.
• Government working with Trades Unions and business groups to develop employment support to protect jobs and incomes.
• Cash grant of up to £25,000 for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs).
• All businesses in hospitality will pay no business rates for 12 months, and cash grants are available if your turnover is less than £50,000.
• For small and medium business interruption scheme will provide loans up to £5million and no interest due for months.

Simon Baynes said:
"Times are very tough due to Coronavirus so this package will help businesses and residents in Clwyd South alike. I don't underestimate the challenges that lie ahead but I am very glad to see the Chancellor of the Exchequer has announced these wide ranging measures which will address concerns expressed to me in the last few days by constituents, businesses and organisations across Clwyd South."

Bus service change due to virus situation

Llangollen county councillor Mel Mile has given details of a change to a local bus service due to the coronavirus situation.

Tanat Valley Coaches, the operator of service 64 (Llangollen - Chirk - Ceiriog Valley), has told the county council it is unable to operate the service over the next two days.

It has been decided that Llew Jones Coaches will substitute on March 18th and March 19th (tomorrow and Thursday) operating at the same times as now.

The council says it will need to await details for Thursday and beyond.

Ken Skates delivers virus statement in Senedd

Ken Skates, Assembly Member for Clwyd South and Minister for Transport, Economy and North Wales (pictured), has this afternoon delivered a statement in the Senedd on the coronavirus situation. llanblogger brings it to you in its entirety ...

There is no doubt that we are facing unprecedented pressures on our economy as a result of the Coronavirus outbreak.

There will be many companies in Wales - small and large - dealing with the fallout of this virus.  From contract cancellations to increasing staff sickness rates; from major supply chain disruptions to significant cash flow challenges, this crisis will have a significant impact on the way our economy works over the coming days, weeks and months.

A significant proportion of the working population may now be off work at any one time during the outbreak and with Wales particularly dependent on small and medium-sized businesses, the impact on our economy will be significant.

As a Welsh Government we are doing everything we can to support businesses to deal with the impact of coronavirus. My advice to all businesses is to use the help and advice that is available.

Any business affected should contact the Business Wales telephone helpline on 03000 603000.  They can help with practical advice - from staffing to financial planning as well as supply chain support.

The Development Bank of Wales is also available to help – it has equity and loan funding it can make available immediately to otherwise healthy small businesses to them through the cash flow and other challenges they may face in next, difficult, few weeks and months.

On Monday I announced that the Development Bank of Wales will give a three-month capital repayment holiday to the businesses it supports. The Bank currently supports around 1,000 businesses and this will help them – some of our smallest SMEs ranging from small food retailers to the creative industries – get the vital help they need.

Today I spoke with the Development Bank Chair to discuss potential further measures we may need to take in the coming weeks.

On Thursday I will be having further discussions with high street banks and the British Business Bank.  I will also be convening an emergency Council for Economic Development on Thursday this week to provide a forum for the sharing of business intelligence and to discuss practical solutions to the challenges we all face.

I have been having a series of conversations with business organisations and social partners and through our three regional offices we are utilising our collating business intelligence to inform our mitigation and next steps.  

I have met with my senior leadership team in the Economy and Transport department yesterday and confirmed that the regional response taskforce teams established during our Brexit preparations will now be operational to support the redundancy and skills needs as they emerge. Our React and Careers Wales advice is being made available and I am actively exploring ways in which these tools can be enhanced in the coming weeks.

Our discussions with business groups and the intelligence we have received has helped to shape the £200m package of support announced by the Minister for Finance earlier today.  

As part of that package retail, leisure and hospitality businesses with a rateable value of £51,000 or less will receive 100% business rate relief and pubs with a rateable value of between £51,000 and £100,000 will receive a £5,000 reduction on their bill. A further £100m will be available for a new grant scheme for small businesses. 

Whatever further consequential funding the Welsh Government receives from the UK Government as a result of support for businesses we will ring-fence for support to businesses here in Wales through an enhancement of our package of support.

The Welsh economy could be particularly affected because of the prevalence of manufacturing and the prominence of the automotive, aviation and tourism sectors. As well as this, workers will be affected ranging from employee illness/isolation and looking after children may not be able to attend school. Areas of the economy where home-working is not possible will face a significant challenge.

We welcome the actions taken by the Bank of England, however the scope for monetary policy levers to help is limited, not least because interest rates were already at very low levels.  

The scale of this challenge is now so large and so urgent that only a massive fiscal policy intervention by the UK Government can now help businesses and individuals bear the burden of what is to come.

Furthermore, a response co-ordinated with other major economies is now urgent and likely to be more effective in reducing uncertainty and maintaining consumer and business confidence than countries taking individual actions.  

Avoiding a major recession and long-term structural damage to our economy should be the UK Government’s major economic priority.  That requires a genuine, four nation approach to supporting the economy and the lack of information from the UK Government is currently hampering this effort.

As devolved government we will play our part in helping to utilise that significant fiscal stimulus in the most effective way. Collectively we need to find a way to hibernate viable businesses affected by this crisis; protect vital supply chains and give individuals impacted by this outbreak the financial support they need to get through. That was very much the ask I made of UK Government during my discussion with the Secretary of State for BEIS this morning and the letter the First Minister sent to the UK Government earlier today.

The UK Government needs to work with the Bank of England to ensure that the banking system has the required amount of funding in place, and the level of flexibility needed, to ensure the survival of viable businesses experiencing cash flow problems.  I will be stressing in my meeting with Banks here in Wales the need to ensure liquidity it available.

On statutory sick pay, the UK Government is bringing forward legislation to allow small- and medium-sized businesses and employers to reclaim Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) paid for sickness absence due to COVID-19. This will be available to businesses in Wales and we will work with partners to ensure that employers over the coming months set up the right repayment mechanisms as soon as possible. I strongly urge the UK Government to use this system to support the most economically exposed and vulnerable individuals.

The UK Government announced a temporary Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme to be delivered by the British Business Bank. This will be available to businesses in Wales via the British Business Bank.

A Time to Pay scheme has also been announced whereby all businesses and self-employed people in financial distress, and with outstanding tax liabilities, may be eligible to receive support with their tax affairs through HMRC’s Time to Pay service.  This is also available to businesses in Wales.

Out transport providers are also facing incredibly difficult challenges. I have been holding urgent conversations with senior figures across the industry as fewer fares are putting significant pressure on the finances of our major rail, bus and airport services.

I have spoken a number of times to the Chief Executive of Transport for Wales.  Across the UK, including in Wales, rail passenger numbers have fallen by up to 18% on certain lines already. Elsewhere, Network Rail has launched a survey of its suppliers over fears of material shortages due to the coronavirus.

Despite the economic impact, all our operators are continuing to follow the most up to date guidance from the public health authorities and industry bodies. Contingency plans are in place and TfW are examining future mitigations such as staffing, stocking as well as issuing additional sanitizer, personal protective equipment, reviewing cleaning regimes.

Regular advice is issued to passengers including the “catch it, bin it, kill it” campaign by displaying posters at key stations and sending out messages through twitter and other social media channels.

A cross industry action team has been stood up with daily communications to ensure they are ready to respond if the situation changes including planning for a range of different scenarios.

The same can be said for the bus industry with additional cleaning of buses and regular reminders to staff about hygiene good practice and additional cleaning materials such as personal hand sanitiser has been issued for frontline employees, depots and work areas.  Officials have met with the bus industry group and I spoke with the senior figures from the industry yesterday.

In terms of Cardiff Airport, I spoke to the Chief Executive Officer and her team over the weekend and my officials continue to be in close contact through this week.  The demise of Flybe left a 5.6% gap in its revenue and this crisis will severely test the sustainability of all airports across the world as the number of flights decline sharply. In recent times Cardiff Airport has diversified its business base and carries less debt into this crisis than many of its UK neighbours.

However, as in other sectors we should be under no illusion about the scale of the challenge ahead.  Tui has said it will suspend the "majority" of its operations and there may be other operators taking the same action in the coming weeks. My thoughts are with all affected employees and passengers who have had their travel plans disrupted.

I will remain in regular contact with Cardiff Airport and the Department for Transport on aviation and other visitor-related issues.

I hope this statement assures Assembly Members that we are doing all we can to protect the Welsh economy and limit the impact on individuals and businesses across the length and breadth of Wales.

When the worst of this crisis is over we must soon look to the future – to the fairer, more compassionate and more equal economy we need to build.  As a Welsh Government we will play our full part in that work.

Latest statement from Public Health Wales

Public Health Wales statement on Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

This statement will be updated daily at 11am

Updated: 11:00 Tuesday 17 March 2020

Dr Giri Shankar, Incident Director for the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak response at Public Health Wales, said:
“We can confirm that 12 new cases have tested positive for Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Wales, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 136. 
“As we are currently only testing within hospitals, this is likely to underestimate the true number of cases.
“The advice for the public has changed. 
•    People are being advised to stay at home for 14 days if they, or anyone in their household, has either a high temperature or a new and continuous cough
•    People are now being advised to avoid non-essential contact with others and unnecessary travel
•    People are being asked to work from home where they possibly can, and avoid pubs, clubs, theatres and social venues
•    People in at-risk groups will be asked within days to be largely shielded from social contact for 12 weeks
For the guidance in full, visit the Department of Health and Social Care website:

https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-events/coronavirus-covid-19-uk-government-response

“People no longer need to contact NHS 111 if they think they may have contracted Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). People with a fever or persistent cough should stay at home for seven days if they live alone, or 14 days if they live with others. Anyone who lives with someone displaying coronavirus symptoms should also stay at home for 14 days. They should not go to a GP surgery, pharmacy or hospital.
“They should only contact NHS 111 if they feel they cannot cope with their symptoms at home, their condition gets worse, or their symptoms do not get better after seven days.”
“The public play an important role in the ‘delay’ phase. By following the latest advice, you will protect yourself, protect the most vulnerable, and delay and flatten the peak, which will reduce the pressure on NHS Wales and minimise the impact of the virus.

“We continue to undertake priority testing in Wales. We are working closely with health boards, NHS 111 and the Welsh Government to develop systems so that NHS Wales and members of the public have appropriate access to Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) testing.”
The table below shows the number of cases by local authority as of today Tuesday 17 March. Please note that at the time of publishing, the residential area of 12 of the confirmed cases today were still being confirmed. 

Local Authority	Number of cases on 16 March*	Number of new cases	Total number of cases as of 11am, 17 March
Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council	7	1	8
Bridgend County Borough Council	1	2	3
Caerphilly County Borough Council	14	1	15
Carmarthenshire County Council	7	0	7
Ceredigion County Council	1	0	1
City and County of Swansea	21**	1	22
City of Cardiff Council	13	1	14
Conwy County Borough Council	1	0	1
Denbighshire County Council	0	0	0
Flintshire County Council	1	0	1
Gwynedd Council	0	0	0
Isle of Anglesey County Council	2	0	2
Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council	0	0	0
Monmouthshire County Council	8	0	8
Neath Port Talbot Council	11	0	11
Newport City Council	21	3	24
Pembrokeshire County Council	2	0	2
Powys County Council	5	2	7
Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council	2	0	2
Torfaen County Borough Council	2	1	3
Vale of Glamorgan Council	1	0	1
Wrexham County Borough Council	2	0	2
Resident outside Wales			2
Total:			136

*Please note that number of cases for yesterday (Monday 16 March) have been amended to include the cases for which residential area has now been confirmed. 
**This figure is a correction of yesterday’s reported number.

The latest information and travel advice is available from:

• Department of Health and Social Care and Public Health England (PHE)
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO)
• The Welsh Government

More details of rates help for small businesses during coronavirus

llanblogger has obtained more information on the rates relief scheme announced yesterday by the Welsh Government to help get small businesses cope with the effects of coronavirus.

A government release says:

"The Welsh Government is today announcing a package of support worth more than £200m for small businesses to help them during the coronavirus outbreak.

Retail, leisure and hospitality businesses with a rateable value of £51,000 or less will receive 100% business rate relief and pubs with a rateable value of between £51,000 and £100,000 will receive a £5,000 reduction on their bill.

A further £100m will be available for a new grant scheme for small businesses Further details on this new grant scheme will be confirmed as soon as possible.

Announcing the decision, Finance Minister Rebecca Evans said:

“I’m pleased we can offer this package of support to businesses as part of our response to the coronavirus outbreak. We are allocating every penny of the funding we will be receiving as a consequence of the schemes the UK Government announced in England last week to support businesses in Wales.

“But I know that helping businesses with their rates bills will not be enough to protect them from the severe drop in custom many are experiencing as coronavirus cases increase.

“We will be calling on the UK Government to act quickly and decisively to provide a very significant support package for vulnerable businesses and their employees.”