Category Archives: Wales

Battery firm chooses Welsh site for Britain’s first gigafactory

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Startup firm Britishvolt, serving energy storage and electric cars, plans 30GWh battery plant at Bro Tathan

A startup company with plans to build Britain’s first gigafactory to make batteries for electric cars has chosen a site in south Wales for the plant after discussions with the Welsh government.

Britishvolt, which in May launched an ambitious effort to create a £1.2bn factory, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Welsh government ahead of signing a lease for a former Royal Air Force base at Bro Tathan business park, south Wales.

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Coronavirus: what are the rules over face masks in English shops?

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Exemptions, enforcement and business reaction to the news that coverings will be compulsory from 24 July

With the government set to announce that wearing a face covering in shops and supermarkets will be mandatory in England from 24 July, here’s what you need to know about the new rules:

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UK coronavirus live: Scotland to relax 2m rule but lockdown-easing paused in some towns after outbreaks

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Scotland’s distancing rule to be relaxed for some sectors; lockdown-easing paused in some Scottish towns; getting English schools back to normal critical, Williamson says

A “partial reopening” of the tourism sector in Wales is to take place over the next few weeks as long as rates of coronavirus continue to fall, the Welsh government has announced.

The Labour-led government has asked visitors to enjoy their time in the country – but to respect local communities.

Tourism is a vital part of the Welsh economy at a national, regional and local level. I’d like to thank all our industry partners for working with us to carefully reopen the visitor economy.

A successful, safe and phased return will give businesses, communities and visitors confidence to continue with the recovery of the visitor economy.

NHS England has recorded a further 35 coronavirus hospital deaths in England. The full figures are here.

For comparison, here are the equivalent daily figures announced by NHS England over the past fortnight.

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Britons to be allowed to holiday abroad from July via ‘air bridges’

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Ministers also expected to end policy of quarantining arrivals to the UK for 14 days

Overseas holidays will be given the green light from early next month, with the government expected to suspend the 14-day quarantine period for a series of countries and also to set up so-called air bridge arrangements for overseas destinations.

While the full list of countries involved is still being confirmed, the initial phase of travel opening up is expected to involve European nations including France, Greece, Spain and possibly Portugal, with other potentially more distant locations to follow.

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All UK chief medical officers rejected lower virus threat level, source says

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Guardian told all four CMOs discussed and refused No 10 proposal, not just Chris Whitty

All four of the UK’s chief medical officers rejected suggestions from No 10 that the coronavirus threat level could be reduced because it contradicted evidence that showed the virus was still widespread, the Guardian has been told.

A senior source in one devolved government said the chief medical officers of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland discussed and refused Boris Johnson’s proposal.

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Stay alert or stay home? How Covid-19 lockdown rules differ across UK

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What you are allowed to do now depends on what part of the union you live in

The UK’s approach to Covid-19 now very much depends on what part of the union you live in after Downing Street’s decision to drop the “stay at home” slogan in favour of “stay alert” and its plans to begin lifting the lockdown this week.

The devolved administrations in Edinburgh, Cardiff and at Stormont have all – in their own ways – opted to stick with “stay at home” while Scotland’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, has described the move by Boris Johnson as “potentially catastrophic”.

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Welsh national parks urge people not to cross border to go hiking

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Lockdown ease in England prompts concern people will drive to Wales to exercise

The three Welsh national parks have urged people not to cross the border from England to go hiking in the mountains or visit its beaches, pointing out that stringent restrictions on driving to do exercise remain in Wales.

There is growing concern that the easing of restrictions over travelling to do exercise in England on Wednesday may prompt lovers of the outdoors to head for the hills and coastlines of Wales.

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No 10 battles to regain control of lockdown messaging amid fierce criticism

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PM’s roadmap announcement thrown into chaos by newspaper headlines heralding significant easing

The government was on Thursday evening urgently trying to regain control of the next phase of the pandemic crisis as it faced fierce criticism and warnings that mixed messaging was priming the public to give up on the lockdown.

Related: PM will announce modest changes to UK lockdown, says Raab

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Welsh first minister to set out plans for lifting country’s lockdown

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Mark Drakeford will announce proposals to ease restrictions as number of new cases stabilises

The Welsh first minister, Mark Drakeford, is due to set out plans on how the nation will aim to lift its coronavirus lockdown.

The Labour politician will announce on Friday a new framework for easing restrictions and seven questions that need to be addressed to help lead Wales out of the pandemic.

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Welsh minister’s mic mistake broadcasts sweary rant to assembly

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Vaughan Gething heard decrying Labour colleague after leaving his audio live on video call

Wales’s health minister, Vaughan Gething, has learned the hard way about one of the risks of videoconferencing after he accidentally broadcast a sweary rant about one of his colleagues during a virtual session of Welsh assembly.

Having apparently left his microphone live after addressing the assembly, the minister could be heard loudly decrying his fellow Labour assembly member Jenny Rathbone.

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More than 15,000 people have died from Covid-19 in UK

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Death toll rose by 888 to 15,464, according to health department figures on Saturday

More than 15,000 people have died from coronavirus in UK hospitals, figures from the Department of Health and Social Care show.

The death toll rose by 888 from 14,576 on Friday, taking the total to 15,464 as of 9am on Saturday.

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Welsh street loses world’s steepest title after New Zealand rival’s appeal

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Guinness World Records changes rules to use road’s centre rather than sides for measurements

Last summer the townsfolk of Harlech, in north-west Wales, were celebrating the accolade of having the steepest street in the world.

A mere eight months on, they are in the doldrums after being informed by Guinness World Records that a New Zealand rival for the title has usurped them.

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Welsh woman declares vindication after ‘guerrilla rewilding’ court case

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Sioned Jones convicted of stealing logs after 20 years of felling non-native trees in Cork

Sioned Jones used to adore the landscape and wildlife of her adopted home in Bantry, a bucolic region in west Cork on Ireland’s Atlantic coast. She planted vegetables and herbs, foraged for nuts and berries and observed birds, insects, frogs and lizards.

Then, on land above her house, the state-owned forestry company Coillte planted a forest of Sitka spruce, a non-native species that Jones considered a dark, dank threat to biodiversity.

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UK weather: third storm in a month to bring more misery in flooded areas

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Storm Jorge may bring 70mph winds on coast and downpours in Wales and northern England

People living in flooded areas are facing more misery as the third storm to hit the UK in a month takes hold over the weekend.

Storm Jorge is expected to batter coastal areas with winds of up to 70mph, while downpours of up to 80mm could fall on already flooded areas.

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Severe flood warnings remain as Johnson’s response is criticised

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Labour says PM’s decision not to visit flood sites or call Cobra meeting is ‘a disgrace’

Severe flood warnings remain in place and rescue operations were continuing in stricken communities on Monday evening, as the government faced criticism for its response to what has been described as unprecedented flooding in parts of the country.

With thousands of properties flooded after a month’s worth of rain fell on parts of Britain over the weekend, and more than 200 flood warnings still in place, Labour said it was “a disgrace” that the prime minister was not visiting affected towns and villages and was resisting calls to convene the Cobra emergencies committee.

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Storm Ciara: Met Office issues wind warnings as snow forecast for UK

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Yellow wind warnings issued and ‘blizzard-like conditions’ expected next week

Weather warnings have been issued for parts of the UK as Storm Ciara is forecast to bring strong gales and heavy rain over the weekend.

Yellow warnings of wind have been issued by the Met Office for north-western parts of the UK on Saturday. It also warned of travel disruption and potential power cuts in some areas on Sunday.

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Wales to ban parents smacking their children from 2022

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Bill passes despite concerns it is ‘stepping into the private lives of families’

A move to ban parents from smacking children has been approved by the Welsh assembly and is expected to come into force in 2022 following a £2m awareness campaign.

Supporters said it was a historic day for Wales and would stop mothers and fathers using physical violence as punishment, but opponents argued it could criminalise loving parents.

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Welsh slate mining landscape nominated as world heritage site

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Government backing raises hopes of preserving ‘place that roofed the world’


An extraordinary landscape shaped by many centuries of slate production has been nominated by the UK government for Unesco world heritage status, a distinction enjoyed by sites such as the Taj Mahal, the Great Wall of China and Stonehenge.

The production of slate in Gwynedd, north-west Wales, has left a landscape dotted with underground workings, terraces cut into hillsides, grey, towering tips and bright blue pools, all nestling within mountains and woodland.

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Congolese torture survivor gets Home Office reprieve

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Whistleblower granted refugee status after hard-won campaign against deportation

A torture survivor from Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is celebrating after a Home Office U-turn allowed him to stay in the UK.

Otis Bolamu, 39, who lives in Swansea, was detained just before Christmas in 2018. The Home Office had planned to deport him to DRC on Christmas Day that year.

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