Na h-Eileanan an Iar SNP MSP Alasdair Allan has urged people to stick to the lockdown guidance in Scotland and to refrain from visiting the Western Isles.
This comes as changes to lockdown in England were announced by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Sunday evening. However, with the exception of a change allowing people to go outside more than once a day to exercise, all other lockdown restrictions remain in place in Scotland.
The key message in Scotland remains Stay at Home. Reasons for leaving your homes include:
• To shop for basic necessities – but only once a day, at the most;
• To take exercise, alone or with your household, not in groups;
• Medical reasons or providing care or support to a vulnerable person;
• To travel to essential work if it absolutely cannot be done from home.
All social events and public gatherings of more than two people – excluding households or for essential work-related purposes – remain banned.
Alasdair Allan MSP commented:
“I have received a lot of queries and comment following the Prime Minister’s address yesterday evening, and the confusion this has caused is deeply regrettable. We have already seen a national newspaper print a photo of the Hebrides beside a caption saying that people would be able to drive to beauty spots from Wednesday. The First Minister had to set the newspaper right on television today and remind them what the rules in Scotland are.
“While the Prime Minister is perfectly entitled to make such a decision for England, the guidance on lockdown in Scotland is largely unchanged. The travel restrictions to the islands also remain in effect and people should not be travelling to the islands for anything other than essential reasons.
“CalMac staff should be praised for the difficult job they are having to do in policing this. This is not something they were ever trained for, or ever thought they would have to do, but from all accounts they are doing a tremendous job under challenging circumstances.
“Having made real progress in recent weeks, our objective now must be to consolidate and solidify that progress. Restrictions will be kept under constant review, and the Scottish Government will set out a phased approach to relieving some of the pressure of lockdown as soon as it can.
“But for now, it remains vital that we continue to adhere to measures to slow down the spread of the virus. Everyone should be staying at home whenever possible."
