Coronavirus in Scotland LIVE as rapid test kits rolled out for college students and staff
All the latest updates from across Scotland on the ongoing pandemic.
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Students and staff at Scots higher education facilities are now able to access rapid coronavirus testing through their local college.
More than 100,000 lateral flow testing kits have been distributed to colleges across Scotland to help detect cases in people with no symptoms.
Authorities are urging people to take part in voluntary testing twice a week using the at-home kits.
A limited number of students are currently allowed on to college campuses at any one time in line with current public health guidance, with safety measures such as social distancing in place.
By Karen Peattie THE phased reopening of the retail sector in Scotland towards the end of April saw shoppers return to highs streets and shopping centres, bringing a much-needed boost to a sector battered by pandemic lockdowns. Figures released by the Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC) and Sensormatic IQ revealed that footfall decreased by 52.1 per cent in April compared with the same period two years ago, a 14.2 percentage point increase from March. Meanwhile, shopping centre footfall dropped by 59.0% in April (Yo2Y) in Scotland, up from -72.1% in March. Footfall in Glasgow saw a 51.8% (Yo2Y) drop, equating to a 16.4 percentage point improvement.
Douglas Ross: Rebuilding of Scotland must start now, regardless of election result
Scottish Tory leader appeals to Nicola Sturgeon, Anas Sarwar and other leaders to set divisions aside and focus on Scotland’s recovery
7 May 2021 • 6:00am
Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross with Ruth Davidson as they hold placards in front of Stirling Castle during campaigning for the Scottish Parliamentary election
Credit: Andrew Milligan/PA
The Scottish Tory leader appealed to Nicola Sturgeon, Anas Sarwar and the other party leaders to set their “divisions aside and focus on Scotland’s recovery” when Holyrood returns next week.
Although Covid deaths and cases have dropped dramatically thanks to the UK’s vaccination programme, he warned them “the economic crisis will only get worse” and it would “require an intensity of focus and all our shoulders to the wheel to tackle it.”
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ALISON Rose, chief executive of Royal Bank of Scotland owner NatWest Group, reopened an old sore as she spoke to journalists about the institution’s first-quarter results last week. Responding to a question from The Herald about the bank’s head office strategy should today’s Scottish election yield a majority of seats for the SNP, Ms Rose did not hesitate when she declared the institution would move its headquarters to London in the theoretical event of a Yes vote. “We have been very clear, and it is recognised by senior nationalists, that in the event that there was independence in Scotland, our balance sheet would be too big for an independent Scottish economy, and we would move our registered headquarters… to London.”