PUBS, restaurants and other hospitality venues in Gwent and across the rest of Wales will at last reopen for outdoor service today.

After more than four months of lockdown, after watching their counterparts in England reopen two weeks ago, and after the political arguments over the Welsh Government’s cautious approach to the ‘great reopening’, thousands of businesses will be able to serve drinks and meals once more, to eager customers.

It has been a long time coming. The simple pleasures inherent in going to a pub, restaurant, or other hospitality venue, for a drink and/or a meal, has been denied to people across Wales since shortly before Christmas when, with coronavirus spiralling out of control - particularly as a recently discovered variant took hold - another lockdown was implemented.

The road back to the point reached today, has been a hard one. Throughout much the winter, Covid-19 wreaked havoc across the UK.

Gradually however, the strictures of lockdown and crucially adherence to them, allied to the rollout of vaccines, have turned the tide, enabling the reopening of schools, non-essential retail, and now, in Wales - albeit two weeks after England - pubs and restaurants for outside trading.

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There have been political arguments aplenty over lockdown easing, about which restrictions should be relaxed and when, and the different parts of the UK have gone about things in slightly different ways.

The hospitality sector has been hit hard across the UK, and Wales is no different, but there is relief at today's reopening, even though some fear it will be a long time before businesses fully recover. 

In England, pubs and restaurants were able to serve to customers outside from April 12.

Since then, there has been frustration within and without the hospitality sector in Wales, heightened at least in part by the sunny weather drawing people out to venues in England.

But now people in Wales can do the same. Publicans and restaurateurs are raring to go - and if coronavirus cases and case rates keep falling, we should be able to enjoy a pint and a meal indoors at these venues too, from May 17.

But for now, we will be sitting - or standing - outside. So, what of the weather?

Sunshine from dusk until dawn appears to be on the cards today across Gwent, according to the Met Office, following the trend of the past few days.

The temperature though, is not forecast to rise higher than 14°C in Newport, Cwmbran, Abergavenny and Monmouth, while the maximum may be no higher than 13°C in Pontypool, and 12°C in north Gwent, in places like Ebbw Vale and Tredegar.

And from tomorrow and through the week across Gwent and the rest of south east Wales, temperatures are set to drop, the sunshine will become more intermittent, and some rain is forecast.

On Tuesday, the Met Office is forecasting a largely cloudy day in Newport, Cwmbran and Abergavenny, with a high of 12°C. Pontypool will be largely cloudy too, though there is a 40 per cent chance of showers from 4pm.

And in Ebbw Vale, a maximum temperature of 11°C is forecast, with those showers also predicted.

From Wednesday until into next weekend, depending on where you are in Gwent, temperatures are forecast to rise no higher than 11°C, and in the north of the area, in places like Ebbw Vale and Tredegar, a chilly and unseasonal maximum of 8-9°C is on the cards.

Some showers are forecast towards the end of the week too, though it appears set to stay mainly dry, if more cloudy, as the days progress.

Pubs and the like will be hoping for a dry and bright May Day Bank Holiday weekend too, to begin to fill the coffers again, and the Met Office forecasts “largely dry and fine conditions with bright spells and variable amounts of cloud”.