Plaid leaders write to Prime Minister and Wales First Minister seeking clarity on work travel

Plaid Cymru Leader, Adam Price AM, and the party’s Westminster Leader, Liz Saville Roberts MP, have tonight (23 March) written to the Prime Minister and Welsh First Minister seeking clarity over who should and should not travel to work.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said this evening in a live address to the the nation “coronavirus is the biggest threat this country has faced for decades.”

From tonight, “I must give the British people a very simple instruction – you must stay at home.” He said.

One of the four reasons given for leaving the house in the official guidance is “travelling to and from work, but only where this absolutely cannot be done from home”.

However, Plaid have said,  “a huge volume of people have contacted MPs and AMs seeking clarity on whether they should travel to work.”

Plaid Cymru Leader @Adamprice and our Westminster Leader @LSRPlaid have tonight written to @BorisJohnson and @fmwales seeking clarity over who should and should not travel to work following the announcement of a #lockdown across the UK. 👇 pic.twitter.com/38pxxQ4Ypu

— Plaid Cymru (@Plaid_Cymru) March 23, 2020

In the letter, they list a number of jobs undertaken by people who have been in touch seeking clarity.

The list includes taxi drivers, builders, wholesale businesses, mechanics, call centre workers and those involved in TV production.

The letter from Adam Price and Liz Saville Roberts reads:

Dear First Minister and Prime Minister,

We welcome the drastic but necessary steps taken this evening as we all seek to supress COVID-19 by enforcing more stringent social distancing measures.

We respect that these are difficult decisions that no leader wishes ever to be forced to make.

There is, however, continuing anxiety concerning a lack of clarity about who should and should not travel to work. In the official guidance following your televised statements tonight, one of the four reasons given for leaving the house is “travelling to and from work, but only where this absolutely cannot be done from home”.

Both we and colleagues have already received a great deal of correspondence concerning how this can and should be interpreted.

It is of course clear that those identified as ‘Key Workers’ should continue to travel to work if healthy.

It is not clear, however, if people who are not identified as ‘Key Workers’ but are unable to work from home should travel to work.

Examples of individuals who have raised this issue include taxi drivers, builders, wholesale businesses, mechanics, call centre workers and those involved in TV production.

It is necessary for you to clarify what is meant by this guidance, and I urge you do so quickly.

Understandably, many people already feel very anxious and we must do everything in our power – however big or small – to try and assuage that concern.

After the significant steps taken this evening, I believe this clarification would give many people a small, but necessary element of certainty.