The leader of Pembrokeshire County Council has stated that “now is not the time to slacken our resolve” as he re-emphasised the need to stay home to protect from coronavirus.

Councillor David Simpson said this week: “I want to take this opportunity to re-emphasise a point made by both UK and Welsh governments.

“We are about two-thirds into the initial three-week period of the extraordinary measures introduced to protect us from coronavirus and to save lives.

“However, now is not the time to slacken our resolve to do the things which are making a difference, namely – staying at home; avoiding all unnecessary contacts and keeping a safe distance from one another.

“Once again I want to reinforce this week’s message which is ‘stay home and save lives.’

“Over the Easter weekend Council officers will be visiting accommodation providers and checking ‘hot spots’ to monitor and assess compliance with the legislation.

“Enforcement action may be considered where it is necessary and proportionate. I can confirm that our officers will also be liaising with the police.

“During these unprecedented times we are asking people not to visit Pembrokeshire. We are all aware that our county is a beautiful place and it will still be here awaiting visitors once this pandemic is over.

“Everyone should avoid all unnecessary travel.

He added that he was aware of concern about visitors to the area, normally ‘warmly welcome.’

“But now is not the time - we will do so again when this is all over.

“The police continue to operate high visibility patrols and there has been a huge drop in traffic-flow on our roads including over the weekend.

“I am pleased to report that monitoring – including across car parks – appears to confirm that, in general, there has been good compliance with the message to stay at home.

“I reiterate, now is not the time for complacency and we must all heed the call to adhere to Government advice including to stay at home and wash our hands regularly and thoroughly.”

Clr. Simpson said that he hoped that messages on local radio would further extend the county council’s ability to reach as many people as possible.

How updates and messages are communicated to older people or those without the internet is also being considered by the local authority.

“I want to ensure that our key messages, service updates and Covid-19 developments are shared with as many people as I can across our county,” continued Clr. Simpson.

“We have a dedicated Covid-19 page on our website which is constantly updated.

“I urge you all to view the information published to enable you to keep up to date with developments, service updates and press releases.

“I want to thank our web team and press department for all their hard work in keeping the information flowing as I am aware that these updates are keeping people well informed. I have also received messages thanking us for the updates which are much appreciated and they have been forwarded to the teams.

“We are appealing for people to join our Social Care emergency response team during this challenging time to help support some of the most vulnerable members of our community.

“We urgently need a large number of home care (domiciliary) and residential care workers to work with us on a temporary basis starting immediately. Full details can be found on our website at: https://www.pembrokeshire.gov.uk/workinsocialcare

“I want to thank everyone who is helping to tackle this virus. What I am seeing and hearing is heart-warming. Everyone is pulling together and I want our communities to know we are all here to support each other.

“Remember: together we are stronger and together we will get through this,” he added.