So why didn’t Sturgeon tell public about Nike outbreak?
Secrecy row as it is revealed First Minister knew of infections at event hosted in February by sports giant
NICOLA Sturgeon has admitted knowing about a confirmed Covid19 outbreak in Scotland and withholding it from the public.
The First Minister yesterday confirmed she had been made aware that delegates attending a conference in February had tested positive – but said nothing due to concerns over ‘patient confidentiality’.
The virus was brought to Scotland by an attendee of the event in Edinburgh, hosted by sports giant Nike, and 25 people – including eight who live north of the Border – later tested positive for Covid-19.
The first Scottish case was confirmed on March 1, with Health Secretary Jeane Freeman saying two days later that a patient was being treated by NHS Tayside – though she did not mention the conference or any other confirmed cases in Scotland
Yesterday, Miss Freeman claimed she had not been made aware of the Nike event or other Scottish cases until after her statement on March 3.
But opponents last night accused the Scottish Government of a ‘cover-up’. Scottish Tory health spokesman Miles Briggs said: ‘It is deeply shocking that the First Minister made the decision to cover up these Covid cases.
‘There was no need to publish any patient details, so the First Minister’s defence simply isn’t good enough.’
Labour’s shadow Scottish secretary Ian Murray said: ‘It is not acceptable to hide behind patient confidentiality. The First Minister has failed to explain why the public was not informed.’
On Monday, the BBC’s Disclosure programme told how 70 Nike employees attended a conference at the Hilton Carlton Hotel in Edinburgh on February 26 and 27.
Health authorities were made aware of a virus outbreak by March 2, but mass gatherings were not banned until March 16.
Yesterday, at her daily briefing, Miss Sturgeon said: ‘These are not always straightforward, simple judgments. On the accusation of a cover-up, that is complete and utter nonsense.
‘Why would we have been trying to cover anything up? We were reporting figures on this. I have stood up here every single day to be as open and transparent with you, the public, as possible. There is no interest in covering these things up, that is nonsense.’
She added: ‘In terms of when I knew, I said in early March, I think it was around the second or third of March that the first cases identified with that event started to be confirmed as positive.’
Miss Sturgeon said she had not been aware of the conference venue until the Disclosure episode, Scotland’s Lockdown, was broadcast.
Scotland’s first confirmed coronavirus case was revealed on March 1. On March 3, Miss Freeman told the Scottish parliament the case was a patient in Tayside.
According to Miss Freeman, she confirmed the cases linked to the Nike outbreak on March 4, one in Grampian and another in Ayrshire.
But asked why she did not disclose any details of the conference despite the virus spreading rapidly, Miss Sturgeon claimed it would have risked patient confidentiality.
She said Health Protection Scotland (HPS) acted when the virus transmission became clear and contact tracing was carried out. Miss Sturgeon said: ‘I was satisfied then and now that all appropriate steps were taken. At the time I probed whether we should be putting more information into the public domain. The advice, which I accepted, was it was not appropriate.’
She added: ‘One of the reasons for that was patient confidentiality at a time when the number of cases remained as low as they were.’
Labour MSP Neil Findlay told Holyrood a letter from NHS Lothian stated only 30 families were contacted as TTI cases between February 6 and March 13. The Scottish Government said: ‘On March 2, HPS were alerted by international public health authorities regarding an individual who had tested positive for Covid-19 following their attendance at a conference for over 70 delegates in Edinburgh at the end of February.
‘The individual was not based in the UK and had tested positive on
‘Complete and utter nonsense’
returning home. HPS set up an incident management team, with representatives from Scottish NHS boards and national and international public health agencies, to ensure all [conference] attendees were contacted. This included advice regarding selfisolation and contact tracing.
‘On March 3, HPS were notified that an individual in Scotland connected to that event had tested positive. Ministers were informed on the evening of March 3. On March 4, this case was confirmed in a Scottish Government press release. Individuals who attended the conference were contact traced.’
A guest at the Hilton Carlton in February told the BBC he had come into contact with a number of conference delegates but had yet to hear from health officials.
It is understood no hotel staff or guests have tested positive.