NICOLA Sturgeon has been urged to “give up control” of any remaining Covid-19 restrictions ahead of a statement to Holyrood on the pandemic due to be made tomorrow.
The First Minister will update MSPs on the Scottish Government’s response to the pandemic on Wednesday afternoon after a change of heart meant the use of face covering was retained as a legal requirement amid soaring number of cases and hospitalisations due to the virus.
Ahead of the First Minister’s statement, Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross has called on Ms Sturgeon to relinquish any remaining rules and “trust the public” to do the right thing.
Mr Ross has also claimed that “the SNP's Covid strategy has failed”.
The Tory leader has pointed to Scotland’s Covid case rate being considerably higher than England since mid-February despite a legal requirement to wear face masks in certain situations being kept north of the border for more than two months longer than England.
Mr Ross said: “Nicola Sturgeon must give up control over people's lives and ditch Covid rules tomorrow.
“She can’t use the higher case rates that she has completely failed to reduce as an excuse to delay or backtrack on lifting the remaining restrictions.
“We have now been living under some form of legal Covid restrictions for over two years. Nicola Sturgeon must now start to trust the Scottish public to keep themselves safe.
“Despite their overly cautious approach, the SNP’s Covid strategy has failed. Scotland’s infection rates have been significantly higher than England’s for several weeks.
“All the SNP have achieved with their dithering and delays is to prolong the hardship of the public and businesses.
“Nicola Sturgeon cannot keep Scotland in Covid restrictions forever. It's time we got back to normality.”
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