Nicola Sturgeon says Scotland will not face a 'circuit breaker' lockdown

Scotland will not face a temporary lockdown labelled a ‘circuit breaker’ as the country continues to battle the continued spread of Covid-19.
Nicola Sturgeon has said there will be no temporary lockdown in ScotlandNicola Sturgeon has said there will be no temporary lockdown in Scotland
Nicola Sturgeon has said there will be no temporary lockdown in Scotland

The First Minister announced at her daily briefing a list of restrictions that are not being considered by the Scottish Government as options for further restrictions to help stop the spread of coronavirus.

Nicola Sturgeon, speaking at her daily coronavirus briefing, said the Scottish Government is not considering a so-called ‘circuit breaker’ lockdown similar to the one imposed in March.

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She added there will not be a return to the ‘Stay At Home’ messaging from earlier in the year, and no nationwide restrictions on travel.

On schools, she said that apart from the October half term holidays, they will stay open and will not close even temporarily.

Ms Sturgeon confirmed she will make a statement to Holyrood tomorrow about the extent of the “targeted” restrictions that will be put in place, following another briefing with her cabinet on Wednesday morning.

In her statement today, the First Minister left open the potential closure of pubs, restaurants and bars, closure of entertainment venues, and the closure of universities and colleges.

"We are not proposing another lockdown at this stage, not even on a temporary basis,” the First Minister said.

"We are not going to be asking you to stay inside your own homes in the same way we did back in March.

"And while we have been asking people to think carefully about non-essential travel, especially overseas and I would ask that again, and while restrictions on travel may be an option and sometimes be necessary for hotspot areas, we are not about to impose travel restrictions on the whole of the country.

She added: "We are not about to shut down the entire economy, we are not about to halt the remobilisation of the NHS, it is vital that the NHS is there for non-Covid conditions as well as there for anything that we have to deal with in relation to Covid.

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"And apart from the October holidays that are already planned, we are not proposing to close schools, either wholly or even partially.”

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