NICOLA Sturgeon set out Scotland’s plan for living with Covid-19 last week, with some of the final remaining restrictions due to be lifted today (March 21).
But what, if any, preventative measures will be kept in place, and how long will face coverings on public transport and indoor spaces be required?
The Scottish Government is taking a more cautious approach to the lifting of restrictions compared to Boris Johnson in England.
However, last week Scotland still recorded the highest rate of Covid-19 in the UK - with one in 14 people reportedly infected with the virus.
Here are five things you need to know as Scotland moves to drop its last remaining Covid-19 restrictions:
1. What restrictions are being lifted on March 21?
In the First Minister’s last update to the Scottish Parliament on Tuesday, March 15, she told the chamber that two key final requirements will be lifted from Monday (March 21) this week.
The first will remove the need for businesses or other service providers to keep customer contact details, such as in hospitality settings.
The second means the legal requirement for businesses, places of worship, and other service providers to adhere to Scottish Government Covid rules will be removed, and instead, the advice will be guidance only.
2. What about international travel restrictions?
In line with other UK nations, all remaining Covid-19 travel restrictions were dropped on March 18.
However, Scotland can reintroduce travel measures in certain circumstances - for example, the emergence of a new variant.
Speaking to Holyrood on Tuesday, the FM said: “While we do have some concerns about this, UK travel patterns mean that diverging from the rest of the UK would cause economic disadvantage without delivering any meaningful public health benefit.”
3. What about face masks?
The legal requirement to wear face masks in certain settings - such as public transport and indoor spaces - will be kept in place, likely until April.
The First Minister was expected to drop the face covering requirement during her last update but said that due to the rising case numbers it was “prudent” to keep the requirement in place.
The Scottish Cabinet will review the decision before the parliament’s Easter recess - but the FM said the expectation is the legal requirement will convert to guidance in early April.
4. Will self isolation rules be kept in place?
Isolation rules, financial support, and contact tracing will stay in place until at least the end of April.
After that, population-level contact tracing, isolation, and support will end and the Scottish Government will stop using the Protect Scotland proximity contact tracing app.
5. What about free testing?
The First Minister told MSPs that the guidance for people to test themselves twice weekly will end on April 18.
After that date, if you have symptoms of Covid-19 you will no longer be asked to take a PCR test or use lateral flow tests to ensure a negative result.
Contact tracing will also ease from the end of April, but people with symptoms of respiratory illnesses will still be asked to stay at home.
The FM assured MSPs: "Let me stress that for any purpose for which we continue to advise testing, access to tests will, in Scotland, remain free of charge."
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