Nicola Sturgeon admits fears over 'anti-tourism' feelings building if lockdown restrictions are lifted too quickly

Nicola Sturgeon has expressed fears that allowing visitors to return to some parts of Scotland will lead to feelings of "anti-tourism" or "over-tourism" building if local people believe it is happening too quickly.

The view of Loch Maree from Glen Doherty is on the North Coast 500 scenic route around the Highlands. Picture: Getty Images/iStockphoto

The First Minister, who could ease current travel restrictions within the next week, said she will have to "build the confidence" of communities and "demonstrate" to them that rebooting the tourism industry in their area is safe.

Ms Sturgeon said it was also "heartbreaking" to think about the impact the lockdown is having on the tourism industry, which supports more than 210,000 jobs and is worth more than £11 billion to Scotland's economy.

But she has warned the industry, which has been given July 15 as a provisional opening date, that the government would have to be "careful and cautious" about people "taking with the virus with them" when they go on holiday this year.

It is thought some travel restrictions could be eased as early as next week. Phase two of the Scottish Government’s route map out of lockdown suggests that people will be able to “drive locally” for leisure and exercise purposes. A five-mile limit on travel has been recommended during the current phase, when some tourist destinations, including at Loch Lomond and Glecoe, have already seen surges in visitor numbers.

Speaking during a summit with the Scottish Tourism Alliance, the main voice of the industry, the First Minister insisted "the book is not closed" on relaxing the controversial two metre social distancing rule in Scotland.

She suggested the rule could be relaxed on buses, trains and ferries if the wearing of face masks is made mandatory.

Some of Scotland's leading hotels operators have announced plans to cut jobs in the face of the coronavirus pandemic in the past few days, including the Crieff Hydro, Macdonald and Apex groups.

Nicola Sturgeon addressing the Scottish Tourism Alliance conference in March.

However there Scottish Government's own tourism agency has admitted that some communities will feel "under threat" about the prospect of the virus being brought to their area and that infrastructure in some parts of the country could struggle to cope with a sudden influx of visitors.

Earlier this month, VisitScotland's chief executive, Malcolm Roughead, condemned the "terrible" behaviour of Scots flocking tourism hotspots after the easing of lockdown restrictions.

He said at the time: "Communities will not welcome back visitors if people don’t understand that locals living in these towns and villages deserve to be treated with respect."

In her meeting with the Scottish Tourism Alliance, Ms Sturgeon said: "I’m incredibly mindful of how difficult this is for the economy and in particular tourism and would like to take decisions which allow businesses to operate in a commercially viable and profitable way.

"This must be done safely and in a way that is consistent with suppressing the virus and does not risk it running out of control - but we all want to move in the same direction.

“We will try to go as fast as we can. Some of the issues around travel are about people moving from parts of the country and taking the virus with them so we have to be careful and cautious about that.

"We do need to build the confidence of local communities – there is a careful need to build confidence as the data goes in the right direction. All of this is being considered but we need to come to a balanced set of decisions. It is a big priority for us to get to a point where tourism in Scotland is open again.

“I don’t want anti-tourism or over-tourism to be a legacy of this. We need to tackle and overcome the challenge.

"I need to demonstrate to communities that opening up tourism in their area is safe.

"We want to work with you to do as much as possible to allow people to visit places all over Scotland. I feel my heart breaking listening to you today.

"We will do everything we can to work with you to get over this as far as we can and as quickly as we can.

"You are all going through an incredibly difficult time. It’s heartbreaking to think about."

Tourism and hospitality industry leaders have led calls for the relaxation of the two metre social distancing rule in Scotland, claiming tens of thousands of jobs are at risk if it remains in place.

However Ms Sturgeon told the STA: "I would prefer to get to one metre if the evidence and advice points in that direction. Right now, it does not.

"There are no absolutes in this. There are transmission risks at two metres, but these are less than they are at 1 metre. And the shorter the distance, the more other mitigating factors like face coverings may be needed.

"Some of the emerging evidence about how the virus transmits is looking at clusters or superspreader situations. For argument’s sake, a pub would benefit practically from one metre but if the evidence tells us that this type of environment may pose a greater risk, that has to be considered.

"We’re not sticking to two metres just for the sake of it. Everything has a reason and we will move as quickly away from these situations as is safe to do.

"Scientists who advise us are saying don’t change the rule at the moment – they’re not necessarily saying never change the rule.

"The book on this is not closed and we will continue to consider this carefully. I have to be satisfied about the balance of risk and satisfied that the risk we are taking is not unacceptably high.

"The situation with ferries may be very different for the situation in a pub. Scientists consider where the virus spreads more easily – that may be in places where, for example, the pattern of breathing is different because you’re shouting. In places like pubs, restaurants and clubs the risk may be greater.

"The balance may change over time as evidence emerges and the virus begins to recede.

"We are looking at evidence on an ongoing basis. We are considering making face coverings mandatory on public transport as this is something that may allow us to ease restrictions there. The two-metre rule will be considered on an ongoing basis."

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website.

While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to scotsman.com and enjoy unlimited access to Scottish news and information online and on our app.

With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content.

Visit www.scotsman.com/subscriptions now to sign up.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them.

By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.

Joy Yates

Editorial Director