FAMILIES, retailers and salon owners should be given a better idea of when they can meet with loved ones and reopen businesses at the end of the next week.

Many businesses in Denbighshire, Wrexham and Flintshire are gearing up to reopen in the coming weeks - but Health Minister Vaughan Gething said there was aways a risk that the situation could change and push the relaxation of restrictions back.

On March 12, the Welsh Government will announce the latest three weekly review of lockdown measures in Wales.

The end of "stay at home" guidance is likely to be announced, along with more details about when non-essential retail, self-contained accommodation, and salons could be allowed to reopen.

The Welsh Government "is thinking about whether we should have a 'stay local' period" to replace stay at home, Mr Gething said at Friday's coronavirus briefing in Cardiff.

Mr Gething added: "It is easy to understand the argument why we should have a period of 'stay local' before having wider travel".

He said allowing self-contained holiday accommodation to open for the Easter, and whether than would be limited to the holidays, was an issue the Government was considering.

But, he said, travelling to and from England for purposes of leisure would still be off the agenda, bearing in mind restrictions over the border.

Asked whether non-essential retail and salon business owners should have a fair expectation of being able to reopen on a certain date, Mr Gething said they must understand that there is a risk the timetable could change.

But the situation has been improving in Wales in recent weeks.

Mr Gething began the briefing by thanking the country for sticking to covid lockdown rules, and explains how cases are continuing to fall

"The public health situation is continuing to improve across Wales," he said.

"The latest seven-day average rate reduced to 50 cases per 100,000 people and all local authority areas in Wales are continuing to report fewer than 100 cases per 100,000 people by week.

"The number of people with confirmed cases in hospital also continues to fall.

"Yesterday there were fewer than 450 people with coronavirus in hospital in Wales - the lowest number since October 17.

"This suggests we're over the worst of the second wave of the virus in Wales."

But he warned that it was not the time to relax, in part due to the new Kent strain of the virus and a possible change of course in the pandemic

He said: "But this doesn't mean we can afford to let our guard down and forget the basic steps that have helped to keep us safe.

"We will take a careful and gradual approach to lifting restrictions.

"This is particularly important because the even more infectious Kent strain is now the most dominant form across Wales.

"Viruses mutate all the time and it's common to see new strains.

"But some of these new strains could become more of a problem and change the course of the pandemic.

"The Kent strain of the virus is a more infectious form than the original version of the disease that we have become used to."

Mr Gething also said it was impossible to predict when festivals and other events that bring people into close contact would be able to resume.

He said the Welsh Government's Technical Advisory Group is due to publish more evidence which may help with decisions on whether such events are likely to be able to go ahead.

"Vaccines are really helping us, but a substantial amount of the fall in rates has come from lockdown measures and people following them," he said.

Mr Gething concluded that he does not think people expect the Government to behave like astrologers, in dealing with a once-in-a-cnetury pandemic of this scale.

"There is a potential for harm if we come out of lockdown too quickly.

"There is a balance to be struck here, and a responsible, evidence-led approach is exactly the right way to go about this."