First death in eight days registered in Scotland

SCOTLAND has recorded its first Covid-19 death in eight days, Nicola Sturgeon said yesterday.

Scotland’s First Minister said that while “even one death is of course one too many”, to have had just one registered fatality of a confirmed case in eight days is “a sign of the progress we have made”.

Announcing the latest coronavirus statistics, she said 2,491 patients have now died in Scotland after testing positive for Covid-19 and 18,384 people have tested positive for the virus – which is up 11 from Wednesday.

The R-number in Scotland continues to be below one, Ms Sturgeon said, with an estimate of just 700 people infectious.

But she stressed people should continue to “stick to the rules”, saying everyone has a duty to “remember that the decisions we take as individuals right now have an impact on the collective well-being of all of us”.

With childcare facilities reopening again as part of phase three of exiting lockdown, the First Minister thanked those working in the sector.

She also thanked parents and carers for their understanding during the lockdown, and the children themselves who were hit by the closure of nurseries and schools.

“You have all been brilliant and I want you to know that everyone is really proud of you,” she said.

The First Minster also said that from today, non-cohabiting couples can meet without physical distancing even if one or both are shielding.

Those who are shielding in Scotland will also be able to visit and stay in holiday accommodation and attend outdoor markets and public gardens.

Ms Sturgeon said she hopes the Scottish Government will be able to “pause” shielding entirely from July 31.

She also announced support for people who were diagnosed with Covid-19.

More than 500 people have had the “traumatic” experience of being discharged from intensive care in Scotland after having had the virus, she said.

Dr Nadine Cossette, a liaison psychiatrist at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, has been commissioned to develop proposals for the support of those who have had Covid-19.

The First Minister said: “I think it’s an important way of ensuring that people who have had Covid get the long-term help that they may need to recover.”

BARS may be off the menu and many schools look set to remain closed for months to come as coronavirus causes more illness and death in many countries.

India’s record daily increase of nearly 32,7000 cases pushed its total close to one million and led authorities to reimpose a three-day lockdown and night curfew in the popular western beach state of Goa, two weeks after it was reopened to tourists.

The top elected official in the popular backpacking destination, Pramod Sawant, said people were flouting social distancing norms.

In Japan, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said he might have to rethink plans for a domestic tourism campaign to help offset losses from keeping borders closed to foreign visitors.

Tokyo’s new cases have been rising by hundreds daily.

“We are looking at the situation with a high level of nervousness,” Mr Abe said of his “Go To” campaign offering discounts for travelling within Japan which was set to start next week.

As is true of many places, Tokyo’s nightlife – bars, clubs, cabarets and karaoke parlours – has been seen as a weak link in efforts to contain the virus.

But the most recent data show the illness also spreading in offices and among older Japanese, in nursery schools and senior facilities, undoing earlier progress.

The Japanese government is constrained by how far it can restrict businesses and public activities and it