VICTIMS OF THE COVID ‘COVER-UP’

Sturgeon in new secrecy storm after staff at two firms linked to virus-hit Nike conference fell ill – just days after she decided the public should NOT be told about the outbreak

NICOLA Sturgeon was at the centre of a new cover-up row last night – after two firms revealed staff developed coronavirus symptoms only days after she decided to keep Scotland’s first outbreak secret from the public.

The companies believe their employees became unwell after coming into contact with delegates who attended a major conference in Edinburgh in February, organised by sportswear giant Nike.

But despite the Scottish Government knowing that 25 delegates had tested positive for Covid-19 – a ‘notifiable disease’ – this was never made public.

It was only last week, after an explosive TV documentary, that the firms realised their employees’ illnesses may have had a direct link to the Nike event.

One of the companies – a digital marketing business – shares an office building with Nike in Glasgow, which sent staff to the conference. The other firm – a hire shop – fitted ten event attendees for kilts.

After the TV show was broadcast, the First Minister confirmed that she had been told delegates tested positive – but said nothing due to ‘patient confidentiality’.

Last night, both Scots companies said they were never warned about the outbreak by the Scottish Government and there was no ‘contact tracing’ of their staff to discover who had met any of the sick

delegates. Public health experts fear the conference may have been Scotland’s Covid-19 ‘ground zero’ – leading to thousands of infections around the country.

Last night, Shadow Scottish Secretary Ian Murray called the secrecy over the outbreak a ‘national scandal’, while Scottish Tory health spokesman Miles Briggs said ‘catastrophic’ decision-making may have caused the spread of the virus in Scotland.

Mr Briggs also called for Ms Sturgeon to ‘be honest’ about what officials knew about the situation and when.

A handful of staff at the marketing company developed suspected Covid-19 shortly after the conference. One was ‘close to being hospitalised’.

It is believed that at least one worker from Glasgow’s Nike store was at the conference at Edinburgh’s Hilton Carlton Hotel on February 26 and 27. Two weeks later, the store was ‘deep cleaned’. The firm which shares the building was not told why.

Meanwhile, employees at an Edinburgh kiltmaker became ill with coronavirus-like symptoms after staff fitted ten delegates.

It is believed the virus was brought to Scotland by a foreign delegate. Twenty-five people – including eight from Scotland – later tested positive for Covid-19.

On March 2, Health Protection Scotland (HPS) was told the delegate had tested positive. The Scottish Government said it was made aware of two cases in Scotland connected to the event on March 3.

Ms Sturgeon said last week that HPS acted when the virus transmission became clear, with contact tracing carried out.

She added: ‘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.’

Despite officials knowing of the outbreak, it was after March 9 before the shop in Glasgow was deep-cleaned, according to a businessman who works in the building.

During that time, digital marketing boss David Hamilton said he and his colleagues shared communal spaces, including a cramped 6ft by 3ft lift, with Nike workers.

Mr Hamilton said he and his workmates have never been ‘contact-traced’ – despite it being Scottish Government policy at the time. He said at least four people at his company developed symptoms.

He said: ‘I found out about this through the BBC documentary. There was a whole set of activity going on, and no one had the courtesy to even let us know.

‘We had about three staff who were certain they got coronavirus but I think that extends to about four or five. One was close to being hospitalised.

‘If Nike knew what was going on, they should have been duty-bound to at least inform companies sharing the same space. You would think common decency would have led you to that.

‘We have a very small, shared lift. You’d very rarely be alone in there. Buttons, handrails... it could have easily been on there.

‘No one from the Scottish Government got in touch with anybody in our office.

‘If there had been contact tracing to Nike Glasgow, then that should have extended into businesses in the same building.’

In Edinburgh, staff at a kilt shop about 100 yards from the

Hilton Carlton also started to develop Covid-19 symptoms.

A shop source said: ‘An employee fitted kilts for ten delegates to the conference. This involves close contact.

‘The employee became unwell shortly after and had to take time off work due to flu-like symptoms and increased use of their asthma inhaler.’

The source added that other staff also became ill with virus symptoms.

Scots-born Denis Kinane, a professor of immunology at Geneva University in Switzerland,

said: ‘The conference could have been one of the “ground zeros” in Scotland.

‘The R number – the reproduction rate of the virus – would’ve been two or three as we weren’t doing much at that time.

‘Those 25 cases could, within weeks, multiply into most of the problems we’ve had in Scotland – that could have been one of the major areas coronavirus emanated from.’

He added: ‘HPS should have been quite involved in this. There are a lot of people in this situation let down by others.

This is a perfect example of the importance of contact tracing.’

Last week, Allyson Pollock, clinical professor of public health at Newcastle University, said: ‘The guidance from the World Health Organisation has always been clear – it’s called shoe-leather epidemiology. Contact tracing is a core tool.’

On March 21, in a message to the First Minister and Health Secretary Jeane Freeman, Professor Pollock said she was ‘concerned about the apparent failure to implement fundamental public health measures to address the Covid-19 outbreak – specifically, community contact tracing and testing’.

She said at this stage

‘it should be possible to contain the disease’, but she never received a response to her email.

The Scottish Government confirmed the first case of Covid-19 in Scotland on March 1, and said they did not know about the Nike conference cases until March 3. That day, Ms

Freeman told the Scottish parliament the first case was a patient in Tayside.

She said she confirmed the cases linked to the Nike outbreak on March 4, in Grampian and Ayrshire. Last week, the Scottish Government insisted those at increased risk were identified, their close contacts traced, and public health authorities were satisfied there was no further infection risk. Ms Sturgeon also insisted ‘all appropriate steps’ were taken to protect public health and that disclosing more details would not have changed the response.

She said the authorities had not known there was an outbreak when the conference was ongoing, and Scottish patients identified later were included in the daily totals published.

Ms Sturgeon dismissed allegations of a cover-up as ‘highly politicised nonsense’.

But Mr Briggs said: ‘It seems that the Scottish Government made a series of catastrophic errors when dealing with this outbreak right at the beginning of the crisis. It acted too slowly and failed to inform other citizens at risk of infection.’

Mr Murray, Labour MP for Edinburgh South, said: ‘The reason the public should have been told at the time is because of the potential impact on workers and businesses.

‘Now it transpires workers at two companies with links to the conference may have been affected by the outbreak. They were kept in the dark by the

Government and only know about the Nike outbreak because of a media investigation. If the Government had its way, this would remain a secret.

‘Nicola Sturgeon is guilty of failing to be honest.’

A Scottish Government spokesman said: ‘All appropriate steps were taken to ensure public health was protected.

‘All cases linked to this event were assessed by their close contact, or contact with conference delegates who tested positive after the event, so public health authorities were satisfied there was minimal infection risk. NHS Lothian and Edinburgh City Council worked with the venue to provide advice for close contacts of delegates and infection prevention and control considerations.

‘The Government has been consistent in its handling and publication of information relating to positive cases of Covid-19 in Scotland.’

Nike said the safety of its staff and the public was its ‘first priority’ and that a number of UK employees who had the virus had recovered.