The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Sturgeon and Davidson trade verbal blows over vaccination progress
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon insists the country’s vaccine rollout is “working well” despite Scotland having the lowest proportion of population to have been administered a first dose in the UK.
Ms Sturgeon, pressed by Ruth Davidson on the Scottish Government’s use of the military in the vaccine rollout, said the number of people vaccinated on Tuesday was the highest yet, with 38,484 being given an initial inoculation in the preceding 24 hours.
As many as 650,000 first doses have now been administered in Scotland.
The SNP leader addressed parliament ahead of First Minister’s Questions yesterday afternoon.
Ms Sturgeon told MSPs that 98% of older people in care homes had received their first dose, as well as 87% of those over the age of 80. More than a quarter (28%) between the ages of 70 and 79 have also received their first dose.
Scottish Conservatives leader Ruth Davidson asked why Scotland’s vaccine rate was lagging, questioning also the figures for Sundays which, for weeks in a row, had shown a sharp decline.
She said: “For consecutive weeks vaccinations have dropped substantially on Sundays. A seven-day service was promised and it will be essential if we are going to meet targets.
“Has the first minister identified what the problem is on Sundays and can she tell the chamber what has been done since last Sunday to improve this coming weekend?”
Ms Sturgeon answered: “The Scottish Government followed an approach which prioritised getting the most vulnerable groups vaccinated first and achieving as high an uptake in these groups as possible.”
She added: “Michael Gove MP was unable to give a figure on how many residents in care homes in England have been vaccinated, as opposed to offered a vaccine.”
Ms Sturgeon acknowledged the figure in Scotland stood at 98% of care home residents.
“We are now accelerating the rollout for younger age groups.
“The health secretary and vaccination team have been working to make sure the capacity is there and fully utilised every day of the week, including Sunday.
“I will personally meet with health board CEOs to hear from them the steps being taken to make sure overall pace is accelerating and there is a consistent performance seven days a week.”
Ms Davidson also asked about the use of members of the armed forces in helping the programme to gather pace.
The UK Government had announced a further 81 soldiers being utilised.
Ms Davidson said: “It’s fantastic news that the armed forces will be on the frontline, helping to speed up the rollout in Scotland.
“That’s exactly the kind of shot in the arm the programme needs.”
The first minister denied the rollout had resulted in a “postcode lottery” following questions from interim Scottish Labour leader Jackie Baillie, who claimed to have received emails and letters from people across the country eligible for a vaccine who have yet to receive an appointment.
Ms Sturgeon said: “People are not being penalised because of where they live.
“There will be differences in speed because of geographies, because of how different health boards are organising this to take account of the differences between urban areas and rural areas, and the different sizes of communities.
“But all health boards are making progress.”