NICOLA Sturgeon has suggested she may not lead the Scottish Government’s coronavirus briefings in the run-up to the Scottish Parliament election, telling MSPs she takes her responsibilities to ensure a fair election takes place “very seriously”.
Currently the First Minister and other senior government figures – including the Education and Health Secretaries – present the briefing about three times a week.
The other two days see the First Minster provide a Covid-19 restrictions update in Holyrood and at the beginning of FMQs she details the latest coronavirus infections, deaths and vaccinations.
READ MORE: FMQs: Nicola Sturgeon calls out Jackie Baillie for trying to stop BBC briefings
Opposition politicians have long called for Sturgeon to be replaced at the Q&As, arguing it gives the SNP an unfair advantage.
Tory and Labour figures have written to the BBC about the updates. Last year the BBC said they would start to only televise briefings based on their “editorial merit” before U-turning on the plans.
Since then opposition politicians have been given a regular opportunity to share their thoughts during an interview segment following the briefings on BBC One Scotland.
During today’s FMQs, Tory MSP Maurice Corry asked: “A key recommendation in the report produced by the Citizens’ Assembly last week is that it should be the health experts who lead the current daily Covid briefings held by the Scottish Government and not the politicians. Does the First Minister accept this recommendation from the Citizens’ Assembly?”
The First Minister replied: “You see I struggle to work out what the Tories want.
“On one hand they’re always saying to me concentrate on Covid, concentrate on the day job and then on the other hand they’re saying stop doing daily briefings to give the people of Scotland the information that they need.”
She asked the MSP if he felt the same way about the UK Government briefings.
“If that’s what the Tories think I should do is that equally what they think Boris Johnson should do?” she put to Corry.
“I mean, I saw the UK Education Secretary lead a briefing last night, I’ve seen the Health Secretary of the UK and Boris Johnson does them regularly. I think it’s really important in a public health crisis that people get politicians who stand up, take responsibility and are accountable joined with public health experts who add important information.”
READ MORE: Nicola Sturgeon hits out at UK Government for arranging call to clash with briefing
However, she went on: “Obviously we’re going into an election period and I take my responsibilities to ensure that election period is conducted properly and fairly very seriously and that has implications, of course, for how we proceed on the Covid briefings in that period.”
Other health experts who regularly appear at the Scottish Government updates include chief medical officer Gregor Smith, deputy chief medical officer Nicola Steedman, national clinical director Jason Leitch and chief nursing officer Fiona McQueen.
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