Labour urges military intervention to enforce Scottish vaccine rollouts

Scottish Labour is urging the government to put military personnel on the streets to help fight the latest surge in coronavirus cases and make sure everyone who wants to be vaccinated can get a jab – even going door-to-door if necessary.

The calls come amid a worrying surge in cases across the country, with Dundee and Tayside hit particularly hard. Although overall the number of new coronavirus cases in Scotland continues to drop – falling below 3,000 for the first time in a week – there are viral hotspots.

Dundee currently has the highest Covid rate in Scotland and one of the highest rates in the UK, at 816 cases per 100,000 people, while the number in hospital with Covid in NHS Tayside last week reached its highest point since mid-February, with numbers rising eight-fold within a month despite the progress of the vaccine programme.

Despite having the highest Covid rate in the country, Dundee still has one of the lowest vaccination rates.

Only 79% of adults in Dundee have had at least one dose, compared to the Scottish average of 86%.

It’s against this alarming backdrop that Labour has called for the military to get involved in Scotland’s vaccine rollout efforts.

“Nothing should be off the table when it comes to getting the spread of the virus under control” said North East Scotland MSP Michael Marra.

“Ministers should look at deploying troops for doorto-door knock-ups to trace the virus and encourage people to get the jag.

“If necessary we should look at vaccinating people in their homes and on their doorsteps to raise the vaccination levels.”

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar is doubling down on criticism of Nicola Sturgeon’s handling of the recent surge in cases, and wants to use a scheduled Holyrood recall later this month to, he says, hold the government to account.