Nike response ‘should be probed’

COUNCIL officials in the city where

Scotland’s first Covid-19 outbreak took place have been told to investigate whether the “response was adequate” following the controversial Nike conference.

More than 70 Nike employees attended the event at the Edinburgh’s Hilton Carlton Hotel on February 26 and 27 where at least 25 people were infected.

The Scottish Government has said contact tracing was carried out following the outbreak.

Conservative councillors in Edinburgh have pointed to “various discrepancies” with the timeline issued.

Iain Whyte, the Tory group leader on the council, said that his party wanted to “gain access to information to an important event, not just for Edinburgh but for Scotland” and “see how it relates to information given out by the Scottish Government and NHS Lothian”.

He added: “The Nike conference that took place at the end of February seems to have been ground zero for Scottish Covid infections.

“While we are told the infection was found and traced and someone was diagnosed and the council was told about that at a later stage, it doesn’t necessarily seem, certainly from media reports, that all of the people who might well have been traced, checked, to see whether they had symptoms or that they were appropriately followed up.”

Mr Whyte said the situation “leads to a number of questions” around “what the public were told”.

He added: “Giving the public information may have helped them make appropriate choices to come forward to seek advice. It seems some of that wasn’t done.”