Lanarkshire could be placed in the highest level of Scotland's new coronavirus tier restrictions, according to a leaked letter from the Scottish Government.
Both North and South Lanarkshire have been identified as areas where there is a "level of concern", according to the letter sent from the government to the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA), which was then sent on to local councils.
New restrictions are set to come into force across Scotland on November 2, with different areas being placed into different 'levels' depending on their current coronavirus situation.
No final decisions have been made, and local authorities will discuss the restrictions in the coming days with the Scottish Government.
The letter from COSLA to council leaders comes ahead of a parliamentary debate tomorrow, in which the Scottish government will debate the framework.
READ MORE: Here are the areas in Scotland with the highest number of coronavirus cases in the last week
It reads: "Because of the severity of the impact of the measures in the highest level, Level 4, Ministers will only consider using it if necessary.
"The data currently indicate that level of concern for two areas: Level 4 is being considered for North and South Lanarkshire.
"There are, however, some signs in the latest data that the situation in those areas may be stabilising.
"Ministers will not reach a decision for these two areas until the latest possible point to ensure that they can take account of the fullest possible picture of the effect of measures already in place; but at this stage the use of Level 4 cannot be ruled out.
"If it was necessary, it would be used to avoid still greater harm, including many deaths."
In the last week, South Lanarkshire has been identified as the area in Scotland with the highest number of coronavirus cases per 100,000 people, recording a seven-day rate of 375.3.
The letter also suggests other areas in the Central Belt will not have their restrictions changed, and will remain in Level 3.
It added: "No changes are currently being considered in relation to other central belt areas. If that remains the case and is confirmed later this week, these areas would remain in Level 3 for the time being.
READ THE LEAK: Full details of the leaked memo
"There are some signs in the data of progress in the east of the central belt area, for example in Edinburgh and East Lothian, but some further consolidation of that progress is likely to be required before it would be safe, on public health grounds, to move them to Level 2."
The Border Telegraph reports that the Scottish Government is planning to place both the Scottish Borders and Dumfries and Galloway into Tier 2 of the system.
They say the Conservative leader of Scottish Borders Council, Shona Haslam, is seeking more information about how decisions are being made, adding that Tier 2 could be the “worst case scenario” for businesses.
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