Nicola Sturgeon has given her second Covid update of the week today as cases around the country continue to rise.

It comes just three days after the first minister's last briefing, during which she urged the public to stay vigilant amidst surging cases and warned she could not rule out the reintroduction of restrictions.

She was joined by Professor Jason Leitch to field questions from the media as the spoke from St Andrew's House in Edinburgh.

Rates in Scotland have seen a steep increase in recent days as cases more than doubled compared to the previous week, one of the sharpest rises of the entire pandemic.

According to the most up-to-date figures from Public Health Scotland, the seven day rate per 100,000 population in Argyll and Bute was the sixth highest in the country (659) for the period from August 17-23.

A total of 563 positive cases were recorded in that time, with Oban, Bute and Rothesay among the worst affected areas.

Helensburgh Centre, North, East, and West and Rhu accounted for a quarter of those cases - 142 - while Lomond Shore and Garelochhead recorded a further 59 positive cases.

On Tuesday Chief Medical Office Gregor Smith suggested the rising case numbers were due to "a catch up phase", with the virus surging through Scotland following the easing of restrictions.

There have been rumours circulating that the Scottish Government is considering a circuit lockdown to halt the spread of the virus, however such a measure has not been introduced today.

Here's what we learned from the first minister's briefing on Friday afternoon...

1. Scotland is not going into a circuit breaker lockdown 

Rumours circulating over the past few days suggested that the Scottish government was going to introduce a circuit breaker lockdown to try and get control of the rising numbers. 

However, this measure was not announced at today's update, with the first minister and her advisors still hopeful that cases will begin to level out over the next few days. 

She confirmed that the government is not currently considering a circuit breaker lockdown, despite reports in the media. 

2. People should not forget basic mitigation measures

Like on Tuesday, the first minister urged people to tighten up and stick to the basic mitigation measures that became part of our everyday lives in the midst of the pandemic. 

She advised that simple measures such as washing your hands regularly, using hand sanitiser, wearing masks and keeping inside areas well ventilated by opening windows can go a long way in helping to mitigate the spread of the virus. 

Meanwhile she refreshed her plea for people to meet outside where possible, with people far less likely to catch or spread the virus outside. 

In addition, with lateral flow tests now readily available, the first minister encouraged people to stay on top of testing and continue to report results, to help the government identify local hotspots. 

She also urged people to think about how many people we are interacting with at the moment and avoid physical contact, such as hand shaking. 

3. Three key steps to reduce mitigation of the virus

The first minister said there are three key steps to reduce the spread of the virus.

These are:

  • Get vaccinated
  • Test yourself regularly using free lateral flow tests available to pick up or through the post
  • Continue to follow all rules that are still in place, limited though they are at this point

4. Cases in Scotland are rising steeply 

The rising Covid cases in Scotland have been discussed frequently in recent days after Nicola Sturgeon warned on Tuesday that she could not rule out reintroducing restrictions if the surge continued. 

The first minister confirmed today that 6,835 cases were recorded in Scotland yesterday, as well as 412 people in hospital with Covid and a further 4 deaths 

It means that over the past 7-days Scotland has recorded more cases than at any point during the pandemic. 

Around third of new cases at the moment are among those who have been vaccinated. 

However, Jason Leitch said that although deaths are still tragically happening, the numbers are much lower than they would have been pre-vaccination. 

5. Advice for people attending Old Firm match

Jason Leitch suggested people attending the Old Firm match on Sunday or watching with their friends should get vaccinated and test themselves before attending.  

However this advice extends to the general public in everyday social situations, with health leaders continuing to urge the importance of vaccines and testing before attending events or social gatherings.