A royal rail tour of Britain by Prince William and his wife Kate has caused controversy after politicians in Scotland and Wales gave them a cool reception because of coronavirus travel restrictions. The couple stopped in Welsh capital Cardiff on Tuesday on the second leg of a 1,250-mile (2,000-kilometre) tour in the royal train to thank essential workers for their efforts during the Covid-19 pandemic. But before their arrival, Welsh health minister Vaughan Gething told the BBC he would prefer it if "no-one was having unnecessary visits". He said he was not "particularly bothered or interested" when asked if William and Kate should travel to Wales. But he added their presence should not be used as an "excuse" for people to say they were "confused" by the current guidelines. That came a day after Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon appeared frosty as they stopped off in Edinburgh. The devolved governments in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are all responsible for health policy and have implemented different restrictions to curb the spread of Covid-19. That includes curbs on all but essential travel between all four UK countries. Sturgeon said royal officials had been told about restrictions on crossing the border from England. "We made sure that the royal household were aware, as you would expect, of all of the restrictions in place in Scotland," she added. The British government in London lent its support to William, who is Queen Elizabeth II's grandson and second in line to the throne. Prime Minister Boris Johnson was "delighted to see the warm reception the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have received on their hugely valuable train tour", Downing Street said. "The tour will be a welcome morale boost to frontline workers who have done so much during the pandemic." csp/phz/adp