On Christmas Eve last year, Jo Stevens became ill with Covid and when her condition deteriorated badly she was rushed to hospital.
A year on, she says she still has not fully recovered and still has disturbing dreams about her time in hospital. Writing for The Mirror, the Cardiff Central MP said it was "the most frightening week of my life". and she wondered if she would ever return home.
She has written with anger about the allegations that Christmas parties were held at Downing Street last year despite restrictions being in place.
Read more: Welsh Government on how Omicron will impact Christmas
"I didn’t have the Christmas I planned last year. I became ill with Covid on Christmas Eve, my condition deteriorated badly and I was rushed to hospital where I spent the most frightening week of my life wondering whether I would ever come home," she said.
"A year on, I still haven’t fully recovered and my disturbing dreams about that time in hospital are as vivid as ever. But I was one of the lucky ones. For so many families, nearly 170,000 of them, their loved ones weren’t so lucky and haven’t come home.
"So when I read in the Mirror that parties were held in No10 in the run up to Christmas, it made my blood boil but that’s nothing compared with how so many bereaved families and friends must feel.
"Talk about adding insult to injury. People died alone, or amongst strangers. Wives, husbands, partners, children - prevented from holding the hand of their loved one in their last moments.
"People up and down the country unable to be together because Boris Johnson told them they couldn’t. My family prevented from seeing me in hospital just like the families of every other patient. We followed the rules.
"It was painful and sad and for many it was desperately lonely, but we did it because we knew it would help keep people safe. But Boris Johnson doesn’t believe rules apply to him.
"He’s spent his entire life breaking them. Remember Dominic Cummings and Matt Hancock? The only rule that Boris Johnson and his mates follow is that the rules don’t apply to them. We’ve all been through a horrible time and it’s not over yet.
"But this year my wish is for a quiet Christmas at home with my family after my nightmare last year – and I’ll be thinking of those who didn’t come home from hospital."
On TV on Sunday morning, deputy prime minister Dominic Raab said "if anyone held a party contrary to the rules, of course that's the wrong thing to do" but he dismissed "unsubstantiated claims" of a party in Number 10 last year when indoor mixing was banned in London.
The Metropolitan Police have said they are currently considering complaints from Labour MPs that Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his Number 10 staff held parties in the run-up to last Christmas, in breach of Covid rules.
It has been reported that a large party was held on 18 December last year where around "40 or 50" people were crammed "cheek by jowl" in a room in Number 10.
To get the latest email updates from WalesOnline click here.
