First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has lifted restrictions on major outdoor events from Monday but has kept the restrictions in place for hospitality businesses. There will be no change to the need for social distancing in premises and table service and the limiting of household groups to three. She said the situation would be reviewed next week with the likely date for the removal of restrictions the 24th January.
The First Minister also suggested that there may be a requirement to extend the scope of the Vaccine Passport Scheme when restrictions are lifted, although she said the Cabinet had not come to any decision as yet. However, it will now be a requirement for large outside event organisers to check 50% of attendees for Covid Certification and this includes the necessity to have had a booster.
The news comes as the First Minister revealed that instead of cases reaching 50,000 in mid-January, it is estimated that cases only reached 30,000 per day. She said, “In summary, the situation is undoubtedly serious but less so than it might have been. There are some signs may be starting to turn the corner.”