Nicola Sturgeon: No need for Covid rule changes despite rise in cases
Nicola Sturgeon has said there will be no immediate changes to Covid restrictions despite a "very slight increase" recently in cases reported across Scotland.
The First Minister said she could not ignore the fact that case numbers have begun to creep up, but that sticking to the basic protections was the best way forward.
At Holyrood yesterday, she said the NHS remained under "significant pressure" with more Covid cases as well as other patients to cope with. Those pressures were likely to intensify during the winter period, she warned.
She announced a £482 million package to help the health service over winter, saying the NHS was arguably under more pressure now than at any other point during the pandemic.
However, at the latest three-week review of restrictions, Ms Sturgeon announced that a combination of compliance with basic measures such as mask wearing and the vaccination programme were helping to stem the tide.
She said: "This is a time for all of us to step up compliance with the basic measures. So stick to the basic protections – face coverings, ventilate rooms, wash your hands regularly, use lateral flow tests and book a PCR test if you test positive, have symptoms or are contacted by Test and Protect.
"It is not necessary at this stage to introduce further restrictions."
