If it is too early, Nicola has probably timed these relaxations - and those affecting tourist venues from Friday - to earn herself back some Brownie points (and therefore votes) ahead of the Scottish elections on Thursday.
In England, at least, social-distancing between different families at outdoor hospitality was guidance, not law. I believe Scotland is the same.
I don’t believe Scotland made self-isolation on notification of a positive test result or test & trace communication mandatory as England did.
You’ve got it the wrong way round. The app is the better option because there’s no legal obligation (anywhere in the UK) to self-isolate if notified by the app, but if you don’t scan in on the app, you need to give contact details when visiting certain businesses. And notification by test & trace can trigger legally binding requirements to self-isolate in parts of the UK.
I'm quite surprised as I thought (first) that it wasn't mandatory anywhere, and that (secondly) if it were to be mandatory, England would have been the last place, considering its lighter-touch lockdown compared to Scotland, Wales and NI.
I think sending a postcard to St Andrews House might be a bit provocative, particularly if you're pretending your holiday is not for leisure and recreation.
The usual way; an unverifiable declaration when you leave (with a £5,000 fine if you lie) and someone looking out for people in Hawaiian shirts
The usual way; an unverifiable declaration when you leave (with a £5,000 fine if you lie) and someone looking out for people in Hawaiian shirts
I hope that those who would use the back door are not the same ones hoping for independence.
This seems to be being kept under the radar for some reason, but it is a cause for concern.
It hasn't really been kept under the radar; it was fairly well covered in the news, although I don't know if it was seen as being important enough to make the UK-wide headlines.
From experience, the vaccination programme here is very slick. I had an appointment on Thursday and there was no problem being seen earlier than the time on my appointment letter. The vaccination centre has been set up in a vacant unit in a retail park and there is a direct shuttle bus running from the bus station. There were 20-odd booths, each one of which was staffed, and I was quite literally processed in a very short period of time!
www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com
I am fairly confident social distancing, face coverings, etc, will be going absolutely nowhere in Scotland in 2021. Happy to be proven wrong though. This time next year seems optimistic at this point.Edinburgh’s biggest Fringe venues seek up to £14m from public purse to bounce back
The biggest venue operators at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe are seeking a public funding bail-out of up to £14 million to secure the future of the event.
Quotes in this article suggest that Scottish Government has told Edinburgh Fringe venues that restrictions mat be in place (social distancing etc.) for six months longer than England (due to end 21 June). So theatres in London will be open with no distancing required, yet outdoor beer gardens in Edinburgh are going to be subject to distancing and masks. Firstly, what is the Scottish Government smoking.
That's what happens when you have a daily show on BBC1 at 1215 where you trot out the same crap each day and call it "communication". From what has been broadcast in the media, a lot of people who voted SNP have given reasons to the effect of "well she did better than Boris" and "she was on TV every day".
Nicola didn't win the election, the SNP did. Whilst I wouldn't expect the greens to be anything other than lapdogs, I'm really not sure the rest of the SNP would stand for another 6 months of pointless and increasingly devastating restrictions. They certainly won't have the cover of support from the other parties once England has reopened.
I thought they were being revoked (or at least changing from law to 'guidance') on June 21st in England,
I thought they were being revoked (or at least changing from law to 'guidance') on June 21st in England,
which is the date of the fourth and final stage of the current lockdown easing roadmap?
Are you saying you believe there will be fifth/sixth stages of the roadmap, not implemented until Autumn??!
MARK
Indoor alcohol is still planned to be allowed from the 17th - I assume the final word on that will come on Tuesday. IIRC the rules are a little bit more restrictive than down south, but fundamentally the pubs which haven't gone bankrupt and can cope with heavy social distancing will be allowed to let customers do their daytime and early evening drinking indoors.
