The First Minister said it appears that vaccination may be reducing the proportion of people who require hospital treatment as a result of COVID-19 and there is some encouraging evidence that the length of time people spend in hospital is reducing, which may allow more scope to ease restrictions in the future.
However, she also said there is a need for continued caution while a significant proportion of the population has not yet had both doses of the vaccine and so remains more vulnerable to becoming ill and needing hospital treatment.
The Scottish Government is awaiting advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization (JVCI) on the vaccination of children aged 12 to 15 years old with the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine after it was approved for use in those age groups by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency. If the JCVI recommends the use of the vaccine for children aged 12 and over, their advice will be implemented as quickly as possible.
While there is nothing specific to our sector, the following question was asked from one SNP backbencher:
In a response to a question on international travel from SNP MSP Elena Whitham (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley), the FM urged against foreign holidays and called for Scots to support the local tourist industry – namechecking her ongoing conversation with the Scottish Tourism Alliance.
The full Official Report transcript of her statement and questions from MSPs is available to view here.
Guidance on COVID-19 Protection Levels has been published. The guidance sets out what you can and cannot do at each level.