The Scottish Government must use "every means necessary" to get Glasgow out of lockdown and protect livelihoods, Anas Sarwar has said.

The Scottish Labour leader said every effort must be made get Scotland's largest city out of Level Three restrictions as soon as it is safe to do so.

He called for a massive increase in the scale of PCR testing and vaccinations in hotspot areas.

He also demanded that Scottish Government ministers seek assistance from the British Army if necessary to rapidly upscale the city's capacity to test and vaccinate.

Testing has been increased, but Mr Sarwar said door-to-door testing must be carried out in every neighbourhood with a seven-day average rate of over 100 cases per 100,000 people.

He said help for those self-isolating also has to increase, with practical support made available and an expansion of eligibility for the self-isolation support grant so that it is offered to every Glasgow adult who tests positive over at least the next four weeks.

Mr Sarwar called for vaccinations to be made available for all over 18s through walk-in clinics in hotspot areas.

He said: “We can’t have Scotland’s largest city and one of the major economic engines of the country stuck in perpetual lockdown.

"I am calling on the government to use every means necessary to get us back on track, because to be frank the action so far has been timid, the communication has been poor and the decision-making has been inconsistent.

"The First Minister has adopted a 'wait and see' approach with businesses and families - but Glaswegians can't wait for a television press conference on a Friday afternoon to hear of their fate. We need urgent action now.

“Of course public health must come first, but so much more can be done to get the city safely out of lockdown. 

"There needs to be a recognition that uncertainty, perpetual lockdown and economic ruin also have devastating effects on people’s health and well-being.

“That’s why Labour is calling for a dramatic increase in PCR testing and walk-in vaccination clinics for anyone aged over 18 in hotspot areas.

“There was some concern for a period that the vaccines may be less effective against the new variants. That has been refuted by new research.

“So let’s escalate the vaccine rollout and ramp/up testing in hotspot areas.

“Glasgow is at breaking point and the longer it remains locked down, the greater the impact on health and well-being and the greater the number of job losses.

"When Manchester or Liverpool found themselves kept in lockdown it was accompanied by substantial economic support for those cities.

"This is what Glasgow needs now - the money is there with millions of unallocated funds. We don’t need manufactured squabbles between Holyrood and Whitehall as an excuse for inaction.

“The public have made huge sacrifices throughout this pandemic. There has been a sense of hope and optimism in recent months. We can’t risk losing that. 

"Let’s scale-up our response, begin to re-open and start delivering the recovery Scotland needs.”