THE First Minister has announced that she will hold a coronavirus briefing today following the rise in new cases of the virus.
Yesterday, Scotland recorded more than 3000 new Covid-19 cases for the fifth consecutive day. Last week, the country reached a six-week high of more than 3300 new cases.
It has been two weeks since Scotland moved to level 0 which meant the removal of most restrictions which have been in place throughout the pandemic.
The majority of physical distancing rules and the limits on social gatherings were scrapped at midnight on August 9.
In a tweet, Nicola Sturgeon wrote: “With cases on the rise again - in Scotland and elsewhere - I will be giving a Covid update today at 12.15pm. I’ll be joined by CMO @DrGregorSmith. Please tune in if you can.”
📺 With cases on the rise again - in Scotland and elsewhere - I will be giving a Covid update today at 12.15pm. I’ll be joined by CMO @DrGregorSmith. Please tune in if you can.
— Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) August 24, 2021
Speaking on BBC’s Good Morning Scotland on Tuesday, National Clinical Director Jason Leitch addressed the rising numbers, calling them “depressingly predictable”.
Professor Leitch said that in the last seven days, the country has recorded "about 21,500" new cases, more than double that of the week prior when around 10,000 new cases were recorded.
He noted that the majority of new cases were principally in younger people under the age of 40, and said that he and other public health advisers were “concerned” by a sharp rise in cases.
When asked about the possible return of restrictions because of the rising numbers, Leitch said: “Cabinet will meet today and we’ve given balanced advice, we’ve told the truth about the state of the pandemic.”
He added that in today’s coronavirus briefing he did not expect any “dramatic changes” to be made, but expects “baseline” protections such as face coverings to remain in place.
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Leitch told the BBC: “No, we’re not seeing specific examples of outbreaks.
“There are a few, connected to events usually, indoor events, people gathering in houses or people at weddings, or pubs or restaurants.
“It’s depressingly predictable.
“We’ve known about this virus for 18 months, we learn more everyday, but fundamentally this virus spreads when people gather indoors with no ventilation too close together, it’s as simple as that.”
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