Nicola Sturgeon has announced a 10pm curfew in pubs and restaurants in Scotland from Friday 25th September. She said that this is “the best balance between slowing down the virus and protecting people’s jobs and livelihoods,” as we head into the winter months.
She warned that further restrictions would be “unavoidable” if hospitality businesses do not fully comply with all the rules. She also said that the Scottish government will providing additional support for environmental health officers for more inspection and enforcement of premises.
The ban on visiting other households will also be extended to all of Scotland and will come into force from Friday, although she urged people to do this from tomorrow. She said that this is based on early data that these restrictions which have been in place in west of Scotland have slowed down transmission rates.
The rule of six where a maximum of six people from two households can gather still applies outdoors.
She described the restrictions as “incredibly tough” but she also said that they do not represent a full scale lockdown and that sticking to these measures could avoid a second lockdown.
She also reiterated that everyone who can work from home should work from home, reasserted compliance strong with hygiene measures and asking everyone to make conscious and renewed effort to do their bit.
There have been 383 additional positive COVID cases since yesterday, with 73 patients in hospital and 10 in intensive care. There has been one new death.