Nicola Sturgeon issues 'stay at home' Hogmanay plea as covid cases soar across Scotland

Get the stories that matter to you sent straight to your inbox with our daily newsletter.First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced a tightening of lockdown restrictions as the number of Covid-19 cases in Scotland continue to rise.Under the changes click and collect services will be limited to only essential purchases, while restrictions were also applied on takeaways meaning that residents will only be able to collect orders from outdoors to limit social interaction.Essential click and collect

Covid-19 is higher than at the height of the pandemic last spring.

Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine will be widely available across the country on Monday.A team of more than 3000 trained vaccinators are on standby to deliver doses to those aged over 80, who will be contacted by their health boards.The latest rollout follows an announcement by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon who revealed that more than 110,000 Scots have already received the Pfizer jag.Scotland has an allocation of 533,640 doses of the Oxford vaccine for the month of January, which requires two jabs,

Nicola Sturgeon "acted in an honourable way" after former colleague Alex Salmond reportedly claimed she breached the ministerial code by misleading the Scottish Parliament. Former first minister Mr Salmond's submissions to an inquiry into sexual assault claims against him have been obtained by national newspapers, in which he claims Ms Sturgeon's evidence over when she knew about the allegations was "simply untrue".

lockdown travel restrictions apply to Trump as much as anyone else, adding a golf trip is not an "essential purpose".The outgoing US president is refusing to accept defeat to Joe Biden, fuelling global speculation about what he will do on inauguration day on January 20.Sturgeon, at her first coronavirus briefing of the year, was asked if she knew whether Trump was planning to visit one of his golf resorts."I hope and expect the travel plan he immediately has is it exit the White house - beyond

Nicola Sturgeon announced the harsher measures in an emergency statement at the Scottish Parliament, urging the public to "stay at home".Sturgeon also announced just two people from different households can meet outdoors and confirmed schools will close to most pupils until the end of January.She said: "The Cabinet met this morning to assess the up-to-date Covid situation - which is extremely serious - and discuss what further action is necessary to minimise further spread of the virus.

In a series of tweets today, Ms Sturgeon said: "The rapid increase in Covid cases, driven by the new variant, is of very serious concern. The steep increases & severe NHS pressure being experienced in other parts of the UK is a sign of what may lie ahead.

Nicola Sturgeon has made another personal plea to Scots to stay away from loved ones to help stem the spread of coronavirus. The First Minister urged families to forsake the first-foot tradition as cases are "worryingly high".There were 2,539 new cases of the deadly virus reported in Scotland in the last 24 hours.Sturgeon tweeted: ":Today’s case numbers are worryingly high again."The new variant is accelerating spread.

First Minister tweeted just after the Brexit transition period formally ended at 11pm on December 31. Scotland's trading and travel relationships with EU countries will now be governed by the agreement announced by the UK Government on Christmas Eve.

link.“Our approach throughout the pandemic has been to engage with the public, explain the legislation and guidance, and encourage compliance, but we will not hesitate to continue to use our enforcement powers as a last resort."Please follow the Scottish Government's advice, which is to celebrate Hogmanay and the New Year with your own household only, in your own home."

First Minister will update MSPs on the latest data and plans to combat the sudden spike in infections, which is being blamed on a new strain of Covid which passes more easily from person to person.The Scottish Parliament was meant to be in recess for the Christmas holidays but has been recalled for only the fourth time in its history so members can debate Boris Johnson's Brexit bill.All mainland council areas were placed in tier four of the Scottish Government's lockdown framework as of Boxing

First Minister made the warning after the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus in Scotland since the beginning of the pandemic passed 120,000 this week.

The SNP leader issued twitter rebuttal in response Tories labelling her “no-deal Nicola” online because of the SNP decision not to back the Tory Brexit deal.

immediately attacked the settlement, saying “there is no deal that will ever make up for what Brexit takes away from us.”On a historic Christmas Eve that will set Scotland and the UK on a different political course from the rest of Europe, Johnson boasted that his “jumbo-sized Canada-style deal” was what the country needs.Johnson said the agreement resolves the European question which has “bedevilled” British politics for generations.But as Sturgeon made plain the end of the Britain’s four

Boris Johnson said the deal would "benefit every party of the UK".The Prime Minister declared it would boost the fishing industry as well as the financial sector - two key employers north of the Border.European diplomats will meet on Christmas morning to review the deal on behalf of the EU's 27 member states, while MPs are likely to vote on the agreement on December 30.But the First Minister took a less than enthusiastic view.Sturgeon tweeted: “Before the spin starts, it’s worth remembering that

First Minister said there were "no excuses" for the breach and admitted she had been in the wrong.

direct to your inboxNicola Sturgeon has apologised after she breached coronavirus lockdown rules.Scotland's First Minister took off her face mask at a funeral wake to chat to three women in a bar, a photograph published in the Scottish Sun showed.While Ms Sturgeon kept her distance, under Scottish Government Covid rules, customers in hospitality venues must wear a face covering except when seated and must wear one when moving around.Ms Sturgeon was attending a funeral wake for a Scottish

held up at Dover since France closed its borders fearing the spread of a new strain of coronavirus from the south-east. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon today called for action and said: "There is no time to lose." Sturgeon raised her concerns at the Scottish Parliament where she stressed there are no "immediate concerns" for food or medicine supplies across the country.