East Renfrewshire and Glasgow prepare for move to Level 3 restrictions

They were among 11 local authority areas in central Scotland placed in the top level 4 of restrictions last month, due to rising number of coronavirus cases.

But this week, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced that all 11 areas would move down to level 3.

Restrictions will change at 6pm on Friday, with the exception of retail premises forced to close under the level 4 restrictions, which will be permitted to re-open from 6am.

Ms Sturgeon said this was intended to help stores and shopping centres better manage the flow of customers after the period of closure.

But she added: “I would appeal to everyone living in level 4 areas to continue to exercise care and caution.

“As we know from our experience of Covid so far, progess can very easily go into reverse. So please continue to abide by the rules. That means, in particular, no visiting other people’s houses.”

Ms Sturgeon also stressed travel restrictions remained in place, with travel in and out of level 3 areas still not permitted.

The latest figures up to the start of this week showed the number of Covid-19 cases in East Renfrewshire was continuing to drop, although at 137 cases per 100,000 people it was still above the average for the whole of Scotland of 99 cases per 100,000 people. The City of Glasgow has also seen a slight reduction in case numbers in the last three weeks, but is still up at 150 cases per 100,000 people.

For details of what you can and can’t do under the Level 3 restrictions, go to COVID Protection Level 3