First minister Nicola Sturgeon has announced strict limits on football matches and all other live events in Scotland in a bid to stem the rise of Omicron.
Ms Sturgeon announced that the capacity of all sports and outdoor live events would be capped at up to 500 people from 26 December for a period of three weeks.
Numbers at indoor public events are to be limited to 100 standing or 200 seated, while large New Year’s Eve street parties – including the annual Hogmanay celebration in Edinburgh – will be cancelled.
“This will of course make sports matches, including football, effectively spectator-free over this three-week period,” said Ms Sturgeon told the Scottish parliament on Tuesday.
“I know how disappointing this will be for those looking forward to these events,” said the SNP leader. “If we don’t stem the spread of the virus, both health and the economy will suffer.”
Ms Sturgeon has made clear there will be no new restrictions on socialising before Christmas, beyond the current “strong” guidance to limit mixing to no more than three households before and after Christmas.
“We are not changing the advice for Christmas I set out last week … I want to be clear to individuals that the advice I gave out last week is the advice that will take us through Christmas.”
But she said more restrictions will be imposed on Scotland’s hospitality venues immediately after Boxing Day, Ms Sturgeon said.
From 27 December, a requirement for table service-only will be reintroduced for venues serving alcohol. “And we will also ask indoor hospitality and leisure venues to ensure one-metre distance, not within, but between groups of people who are attending together,” she said.
The Welsh government announced earlier on Tuesday that sporting events in Wales will be played behind closed doors from 26 December to help control the spread of Omicron. Nightclubs in Wales will be closed from 27 December under the new rules.
Meanwhile, Scotland is to receive around £80m in extra funding after chancellor Rishi Sunak announced a £1bn rescue package for the hospitality and leisure sectors, including grants of up to £6,000 for each premise for each eligible firm.
Ms Sturgeon told MSPs that recent funding from the Treasury will give Scotland an extra £175m to spend now, bringing the total package for business support over the next three weeks to £375m.
