BBC News Scotland editor Sarah Smith has tweeted out an apology after saying the First Minister has “enjoyed” making lockdown decisions by “mistake”.
The reporter was discussing Scottish Government plans to end lockdown during a BBC News at Ten segment last night when she said it “has been obvious that Nicola Sturgeon has enjoyed the opportunity to set her own lockdown rules” rather than follow Westminster’s lead.
READ MORE: BBC's Sarah Smith claims FM 'enjoys' making decisions on Covid-19
Earlier this month the Prime Minister announced he would ease coronavirus lockdown measures in England and remove the Stay at Home messaging, but Nicola Sturgeon, like her counterparts in Wales and Northern Ireland, maintained tighter restrictions and continued urging Scots to Stay at Home to save lives.
The First Minister earlier rejected Smith’s comment, saying: “Never in my entire political career have I ‘enjoyed’ anything less than this.”
Now Smith has said it was a “mistake”, and she had intended to use the word “embraced”.
I do not believe that @NicolaSturgeon is enjoying this crisis. I had meant to say on the ten o’clock news that she has “embraced” the opportunity to make a policy unique to Scotland. I said “enjoyed” by mistake. Not suggesting she is enjoying crisis but embracing devolution https://t.co/WLA7WEet5q
— sarah smith (@BBCsarahsmith) May 19, 2020
She tweeted: “I do not believe that @NicolaSturgeon is enjoying this crisis. I had meant to say on the ten o’clock news that she has “embraced” the opportunity to make a policy unique to Scotland. I said “enjoyed” by mistake. Not suggesting she is enjoying crisis but embracing devolution.
“On last night’s News at Ten I said @NicolaSturgeon had “enjoyed the opportunity to set her own lockdown rules”I should have said she was “embracing” the opportunity to set a separate policy for Scotland. I never meant to suggest she is enjoying this crisis. Of course she is not.”
The Scottish Government is due to lay out its owns plans for easing lockdown this week in a “roadmap” for the weeks and months ahead.
From May 28 Scots can expect garden centres to reopen, as well as rules relaxed on seeing people from outside your own household as long as physical distancing is maintained.
These plans, as well as leaked plans for school reopenings, will be laid out in more detail by the First Minister this week.
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