The public are “losing patience” with the SNP Government repeatedly ‘moving the goalposts’ and choosing to prolong some Covid restrictions indefinitely, according to the Scottish Conservatives.
Speaking after Tuesday’s Covid statement from the First Minister, Douglas Ross welcomed changes to self-isolation rules for double vaccinated and younger people, which the Scottish Conservatives had called for previously.
However, he criticised the SNP Government for “moving the goalposts” and keeping a number of curbs in place beyond Level 0.
Some of the mitigations that will remain in place include face masks in schools, capacity constraints at events, and guidance on social distancing.
The First Minister also talked up the possibility of local lockdowns or travel bans in the future.
Scottish Conservative Leader Douglas Ross said: “The success of Scotland and the UK’s vaccine scheme means we can now look to move forward and remove almost all Covid restrictions.
“The changes to self-isolation rules towards a test-first system, as we proposed previously, are welcome. This should prevent young people and the double vaccinated from having their lives unduly disrupted.
“However, continuing with so many Covid restrictions indefinitely will hold Scotland’s recovery back. These restrictions will have serious consequences for businesses, family finances and young people’s education.
“We have moved beyond Level 0 but the government are still clinging to control over large parts of people’s lives.
“The goalposts have been moved again. We are now stuck in a new Level -1.
“Clear communication is essential to maintaining public trust and compliance. This new halfway house could create confusion.
“People have sacrificed and tolerated severe constraints on their lives with impressive dedication because it was necessary and the public health data supported the decisions.
“But people are losing patience with these last-minute extensions and limitations on their lives without enough of a justification or a clear idea of what comes next.
“The ongoing threat of local lockdowns and travel bans does not reflect the success of the vaccine scheme.
“While they make sense in some other settings, prolonging the use of face masks in schools will limit young people’s learning and prevent a return to normality in classrooms.
“Social distancing is now in a grey area where the legal restriction is gone but the guidance remains in force. That limbo will be unhelpful to businesses.
“In response to these serious concerns, the First Minister grandstanded about the difficulty of taking tough decisions, which would be a lot more credible if she was leading her government’s response to the drug deaths crisis.”