Nicola Sturgeon's £500 Covid thank you will be paid to pharmacy staff in Scots supermarket after Morrisons performs U-turn

First Minister is taking questions from MSPs on the coronavirus committee at Holyrood.Nicola Sturgeon is being quizzed on her handling of the pandemic and how Scotland will exit lockdown in the next couple of weeks and months.MSPs will ask Nicola Sturgeon, and Dr Gregor Smith, Chief Medical Officer for Scotland, a number of questions on the pandemic.The meeting will take place virtually and can be viewed on the Scottish Government website.

coronavirus strain in Scotland. The person travelled from Rio de Janeiro to Edinburgh via Paris on February 19 and has tested positive for covid-19 with with initial lab findings suggesting it may be the Brazil variant.

outdoor meetings could be announced by Nicola Sturgeon in her latest coronavirus update this afternoon.The First Minister is due to give a statement to MSPs in the Scottish Parliament around 2.20pm today.She has already indicated a change in the rules on outdoor meetings - which at the moment only allow for two people from two different households to get together - could be coming.On Friday, Sturgeon indicated "good progress" with the vaccination programme and the falling number of infections

daily number of covid cases dropped to its lowest level since September.A total of 498 people received positive test results yesterday - the first time the figure has dropped below 500 in more than six months.The SNP leader is due to update the Scottish Parliament on lockdown on Tuesday - and she said there could be an announcement on "relatively minor, but important changes to the rules around our ability to meet people outdoors, and also on how young people are able to interact with friends

First Minister said there was "good evidence" the national vaccination programme was already reducing the number of deaths from the virus across the country.And the SNP leader revealed the average number of covid cases being reported each day in Scotland had dropped to 657 - the lowest rate since October.It means all primary school pupils will be able to return to class as of March 15 - with high schools reopening full-time after the Easter break.Sturgeon added that a further review of easing

coronavirus in the last 24 hours, the Scottish Government has announced.542 new cases have been identified overnight across the country.Since the start of the pandemic, 7,164 people have lost their lives to coronavirus in Scotland while 203,012 have tested positive.A total of 784 people are being treated in hospital for the virus with 71 in intensive care.Yesterday Health Secretary Jeane Freeman marked one year since the first confirmed case of coronavirus in Scotland.She said: “During the last

school after the Easter holidays.In a statement to MSPs the First Minister said all primary school children will be back in the classroom in two weeks time by March 15.The resumption of face-to-face learning is dependent on the state of the virus in Scotland.Last week kids from primary one to three were allowed back to the classroom after restrictions were lifted slightly.The SNP leader said all primary school pupils will be able to return to childcare as well in the coming weeks.Sturgeon told

Sturgeon is the focus of an investigation over whether she misled the Scottish Parliament on when she knew about allegations of harassment made against her predecessor Alex Salmond.Sturgeon said she first learned of the complaints in a meeting with Salmond at her home in early April 2018, but it later emerged she had been told by his former chief of staff in her Holyrood office a few days prior, a fact she claims to have forgotten.The First Minister has referred herself for investigation by

Anas Sarwar after he became the new Scottish Labour leader.Despite being longtime political rivals the First Minister has admitted she 'likes and rates' Sarwar after he scooped the top job.It comes after he beat out Monica Lennon the Labour leader position this morning.The Scottish Labour leadership contest finally drew to a close as this morning as politicians rallied round Sarwar's win.Sturgeon tweeted: "Congratulations to @AnasSarwar- he (and his dad before him) and I are longtime political

Nicola Sturgeon reckons the First Minister should buy it.

latest plan to ease restrictions yesterday but it was criticised for not looking beyond the end of April.The UK Government's routemap out of lockdown for England claimed all social restrictions could end as early as June 21.But Sturgeon said she would be “making it up” if she gave a specific date for the end of coronavirus restrictions.Speaking at the coronavirus briefing in Edinburgh on Wednesday, the SNP leader questioned Johnson's June 21 date.“If I was to give you a fixed, hard and fast date

Nicola Sturgeon's lockdown easing announcement today.This afternoon, the First Minister said that lockdown restrictions across Scotland should be "significantly eased" by late April.She revealed that non-essential shops, gyms, hospitality businesses and hairdressers could all reopen with social distancing measures in place if coronanvirus transmission continues to fall across the country.The existing stay at home restriction will be lifted by April 5, with people being able to meet in larger

could be back in class by March 15 with high schools fully open by April 5.But opposition MSPs and business leaders criticised today's document for lacking detail.Speaking to MSPs, Sturgeon said lockdown would ease in phases - separated by intervals of at least three weeks - culminating in the removal of the stay at home order on April 5.Scotland will move back to a regional system of restrictions by the end of that month.The rest of primary school years, as well as more senior phase pupils in

"route map" is published.

First Minister left a four nations call with the Prime Minister and the leaders of the other devolved administrations to take part in her regular coronavirus broadcast today.With the call between the leaders coming as plans for the easing of lockdown restrictions are being unveiled, the Scottish Tories accused the First Minister of having the wrong priority.A Conservative spokesman said: “It will raise more than a few eyebrows that Nicola Sturgeon’s priority is the BBC briefing over working

Jason Leitch painted a picture of a future when Scots would be able to fly to parts of the world that had the virus under control.A system of travel corridors allowing people to fly to certain countries used to be in operation, but the policy was scrapped as a way of getting to grips with infection levels.READ MORE: Scots may be able to travel abroad to ‘vaccinated’ countries says Jason LeitchBilly Dodds and Steven Thompson were left baffled by Rangers’ partygoing stars as the Ibrox five were

lockdown since Christmas with non-essential shops shut, almost all hospitality businesses closed and a ban on travelling outwith local council areas.The First Minister is expected to say that schools can begin reopening to the youngest primary pupils from next week, with limited numbers of senior high school students also allowed to return to class.But Scots will be hoping she can also provide some detail on when the toughest lockdown restrictions can expect to be eased.The number of positive

Nicola Sturgeon has led tributes to Scots entertainment legend Sydney Devine, who died at the age of 81.The First Minister said the country and Western singer’s name was “synonymous with Scottish entertainment”.She wrote on Twitter: “So sad. For Scots of a certain vintage - which definitely includes me - the name Sydney Devine was once synonymous with Scottish entertainment.

quarantine requirements  in England to match those planned for Scotland, which will require all international arrivals to self-isolate in hotels. The  Labour leader  said and estimated 10,000 travellers a day will be arriving in the UK from “higher-risk countries” where the South African or Brazilian coronavirus variants are circulating but which are not on the Government’s red list.