If you delve deeper, you will find that the BGH is almost at breaking point and that there have been 101 new cases in the last 7 days.
Galashiels has seen many people travelling by train from Gorebridge, Newtongrange and Edinburgh simply for drinking sessions.
Melrose has required regular Police visits to The Ship Inn and King's Arms due to social distancing being ignored by some very, very drunk people.
When even the Tory MSP Adam Tomkins (no lover of The Scottish Government) has fully supported the new measures, it beggars belief that the reactions here mention things like Queen Nicola and coup d'etats.
Do none of you have any conception about how serious this is?
This is a dreadful disease that you would not wish upon your worst enemy.
Not travelling means not spreading the disease.
For all your complaints about how Scotland has handled this pandemic, consider that in the last
week, the various countries that make up the UK have seen:
England - over 105,000 new cases and over 2,500 deaths
Wales - over 11,700 new cases and 140 deaths
Northern Ireland - over 3,200 new cases and 74 deaths
Scotland - over 6,100 new cases and 195 deaths
The graph below confirms that Scotland has been doing better that the other 3 nations in fighting Covid but it is still a dreadful situation.
Closing the borders will, hopefully, prevent the spread of the disease by people infected in London and elsewhere.
The virus is spread by people mixing and, crucially, travelling. It's not rocket science to see that reducing mixing and travelling will help reduce the spread of the virus.
View attachment 87366
Scotland's R-number is between 0.9 and 1.1 while England's is between 1.1 and 1.3 (and growing at 5% per week). Anything 1 and above is bad.
Everything that The Scottish Government announced yesterday was solely based on science, fact and statistics. Do you really think that any politician from any party wakens up and says I want to shut everything down due to badness? I'm going to shut the border because I can? Behave yourselves.
As touched on above, even (yes, even) the Tories in Scotland are on board - surely, that tells you enough to realise that this is real?
Adam Tomkins MSP tweeted:
This is not about constitutional politics. Not this time. Let’s be crystal clear about that. If it was, I’d the first to jump and down about it. Devastating news about the new restrictions across Scotland and rUK. But please abide by them. Plainly, the situation is serious. This is going to be very tough on millions of folk. But it will be even worse if this thing runs out of control. Stay safe. Take no unnecessary risks.
Douglas Ross stated:
Restrictions necessary, says Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross.
You would not like to hear my opinions of either Tomkins or Ross but, come on, they're behind the new restrictions and yet people here think you know better?
You don't.