Glasgow to stay in level three but Moray moves to level two of COVID restrictions

Glasgow will remain under level three coronavirus restrictions for at least another week, while Moray will move to level two of the five-tier system at midnight.

East Renfrewshire, which has recently shown a rise in the number of new COVID-19 cases, will stay in level two because many of the positive tests can be traced to specific household clusters.

Nicola Sturgeon said transmission in Glasgow "appears to be much more widespread" as she confirmed the Scottish Government's decisions during a lunchtime briefing.

It means that people in Glasgow - the only local authority in level three - are not allowed to go into another person's house, unless for reasons such as joining an extended household or caring for a vulnerable person.

However, those in level two can meet socially in groups of up to six people from three households inside someone's home, and can stay overnight.

Additionally in level two, cafes, pubs and restaurants can sell alcohol indoors until 10.30pm, which is not the case in level three, where alcohol can only be consumed outdoors in a beer garden for example.

However, hospitality businesses are allowed to open indoors for the sale of food and non-alcoholic drinks until 8pm.

The First Minister also said travel restrictions will be imposed between Scotland and three local authorities in England - Bedford, Bolton and Blackburn and Darwen - because of "particularly serious outbreaks" of the so-called Indian variant, which she chose to call the April-02 variant.

Sturgeon said: "We hope that these rules and guidelines will not be in place for very long, but at the moment, they are a further way of helping us reduce the risk that any more of this new variant comes into Scotland, while we are trying to deal with outbreaks of it that we have right now."

There were 414 new cases of coronavirus recorded in Scotland yesterday. A total of 212 were in Greater Glasgow and Clyde, 62 in Lanarkshire and 48 in Lothian.

There are 81 people receiving treatment in hospital, four of whom are in intensive care.

As of this morning, 3,082,251 people have received a first dose of the vaccine, with the total of second doses now at 1,769,040.

Commenting on the data, Sturgeon said: "Today's figures show that across much of the country cases remain at relatively low levels, and that is positive.

"And also the number of people in intensive care and hospital with COVID continues to be lower than it has been for the majority of this year.

"That said, there are no grounds at all right now for complacency. We are seeing an increase in COVID rates just now, not just in Glasgow, although the biggest concentration is in Glasgow, but we're seeing an increase in several parts of the country.

"Across Scotland as a whole new cases have risen over the course of the past week by more than 25 per cent and the latest estimate we have of the our numbers suggests that it now might be slightly above one again."