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Nicola Sturgeon repeats face coverings call and plea to people to stick to coronavirus guidelines


By Gregor White

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Nicola Sturgeon.
Nicola Sturgeon.

The people of Scotland have been called on to start wearing face coverings in all enclosed spaces to protect both themselves and others.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon made the call during today's Scottish Government daily briefing on coronavirus.

“Wear a face covering when you're in shops and public transport and again I want to make a direct appeal here – if you haven't been wearing a face covering so far, I'm asking you to please think about doing so now.

“It can offer some protection to other people, it protects them from you transmitting the virus to them if you have it, perhaps without knowing it, and other people who have face coverings are offering you some protection as well.

“It's something all of us can do to protect each other.”

It echoes a call made by the Scottish Government previously, though at the time Ms Sturgeon said the evidence on the benefits of using face coverings was "limited".

Under the route map to the easing of lockdown people are expected to wear them on public transport.

On statistics there were 53 new confirmed cases of coronavirus, though 40 of those predate the previous 24 hours.

A further 122 people are in hospital though the total number of people in hospital decreased by 23.

A total of 34 patients are in intensive care and a further 12 deaths have been registered due to Covid-19.

The First Minister also revealed that 1010 older people were discharged from hospital and returned either to their own homes or to care homes during April.

This comes amid growing calls for information about the possible spread of the virus from hospitals to care homes.

In today's briefing Ms Sturgeon was also keen to repeat her message about people behaving responsibly as coronavirus lockdown restrictions are eased.

In terms of the effort to drive down the infection rate she said: “Each and every one of us has a part to play in that effort and it remains the case that the best way in which all of us can show solidarity with each other is by sticking to the rules and the public health guidance.

“You should still be staying at home most of the time right now and you should still be meeting fewer people than normal, I’d ask all of you to consider whether or not your life feels as if it is going back to normal, I am sure it is not.

“But if it is perhaps you should think about whether you think you are following all of the public health guidance because, unfortunately and regrettably, our lives shouldn't feel completely normal right now.

“When you do meet people from another household, when you are away from home, you should stay outdoors at all times and you should stay two metres apart from members of other households.

“You might be reading or hearing in the media today some voices saying that one metre is sufficient, so I want to take the opportunity today to stress that the clear and strong advice from the Scottish Government is to stay two metres apart from those in other households.

“Don't meet up with more than once a day and please keep to a maximum – and I stress a maximum – of eight people in a group.

“And if you're away from your home, out and about, please remember to take hand sanitiser with you."

Related: 'Obey coronavirus rules or risk a return to lockdown'

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