‘Follow up-to-date official advice’, FUW urges members in light of Coronavirus crisis

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The Farmers’ Union of Wales is reminding members to follow the latest advice from Public Health Wales and Wales NHS on coronavirus (COVID-19) in order to minimise disease spread and reduce the risk of infection.  

Up-to-date information can be found here:  

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/ 

https://phw.nhs.wales/news/public-health-wales-statement-on-novel-coronavirus-outbreak/

FUW President Glyn Roberts said: “There is a huge amount of misinformation being published online, so it is important that advice from legitimate sources is followed.”  

Mr Roberts’ comments came after Twitter revealed it had recently had to take down a series of posts that were from a fake hospital giving out false advice. 

Some disease experts have suggested we are still to reach the peak season for coronavirus but hope to delay and flatten the peak, which will reduce the pressure on NHS Wales and minimise the impact of the virus.

“Should a member contact coronavirus, or be affected in some other way and there is a subsequent impact on the ability to undertake daily farm business then the FUW can look at this on a case-by-case basis and will provide support where possible,” said Glyn Roberts.

FUW Head of Policy Dr Nick Fenwick added: “We are liaising with the Welsh Government on what changes can be made in order to help the industry to complete and submit their SAF forms this year, during what can only be described as extraordinary circumstances. 

“We are expecting the UK Government to put measures in place which would require every Briton over the age of 70 to stay at home for an extended period to protect themselves from coronavirus. 

“Whilst this is not the case right now, if these measures are put in place, we could face immense problems in meeting the current 15th May SAF deadline, especially as many members rely on FUW support to complete and submit their forms due to poor or non-existent internet connections and the complex nature of the online submission process,”added Mr Fenwick.