It is always darkest before the dawn. We face a season of advent without parallel in peace time.

From Friday, December 4, Welsh pubs, restaurants and cafes will have to close by 6pm each evening and will be unable to sell alcohol. Additionally, cinemas, bowling alleys, bingo halls, museums and galleries will also need to shut from Friday.

Wales’ attempts to save preventable deaths from the Covid-19 pandemic necessitates these strict regulations.

The First Minister of Wales, Mark Drakeford, estimates that without these changes there could be between 1,000 and 1,700 preventable deaths over the winter. We have travelled too far in 2020, sacrificed too much to let go of our discipline in the interim period to when a vaccine becomes available.

After the success of Wales’ firebreak lockdown there is now clear scientific evidence that the virus is once again exponentially growing in Wales. The time to act is now.

The people of Islwyn who I represent are acutely aware of the precious balance of saving lives and saving livelihoods that is considered at every stage when the Welsh Government acts.

A total of £340 million has been made available in Wales to support firms hit by the restrictions. We know that the loss of Christmas trade will be severe for many hospitality businesses but Christmas 2020 will be a Christmas like no other.

That is why the four nations of the United Kingdom have jointly agreed that from December 23 to December 27 covid regulations will be eased to allow three households to form a bubble and to meet up in homes, outdoor spaces and places of worship.

Over this five day Christmas window you should not be meeting up with anyone else and even then you must consider whether it is in the safe interests of your family to meet up. We all share the human desire to hug those closest to us but we must caution ourselves now more than ever.

We are at the cusp of a vaccination programme starting. The First Minister has stated that a coronavirus vaccine will be ready to be used in Wales within a week of getting the go ahead.

The Welsh people have to make one last determined effort to be disciplined and to get us safely into 2021. Like all the great Welsh rugby teams we are so proud of we are in the final quarter of the match, victory lays before us. We must not falter. We must not fail.