North-east residents urged to ‘stick with it’ as new Covid-19 restrictions announced

Residents in the north-east have been urged to “stick with it” as new measures were introduced to combat Covid-19.

Many senior figures in the region – including council leaders – reacted with dismay to the news measures would be imposed on the hospitality sector.

‘It’s like the prohibition era again’: Dismay as pubs and restaurants are banned from selling alcohol and told to close indoors at 6pm

Bans on visiting other people’s homes have also been continued – with some exceptions such as providing care.

However, local political figures have insisted the new restrictions, although tough to take, are necessary to prevent cases of coronavirus spiralling out of control.

Aberdeen Central MSP Kevin Stewart said: “Without action, we were headed to a return of the peak levels of infection that we saw in spring by the end of October so let there be no doubt that decisive action was required.

“There is a very real and ongoing danger presented by this virus that simply cannot be ignored and these new restrictions, while tough for everyone, are absolutely necessary to stop the spread and help bring us to a better place sooner – this is hard, but we have to stick with it.”

Meanwhile, north-east Labour MSP Lewis Macdonald called on ministers to ensure a £40 million support package for businesses affected by the new restrictions is distributed fairly across the country.

He said: “It is only right that the tougher hospitality restrictions which have been imposed on the central belt are not being introduced in Aberdeen and the north-east. Aberdeen has already been through a local lockdown, which forced some businesses to close and cost jobs.

“The hospitality industry in Aberdeen is facing a significant reduction in revenue over the next three weeks, on top of the losses already suffered because of the Scottish Government-imposed local lockdown in August.

Aberdeen bar takes decision to close for the foreseeable future in response to new restrictions

“Because of this, it is vital that bars and restaurants in Aberdeen are also able to benefit from the extra Scottish Government funding, and that access to this much-needed financial support is not restricted to businesses in the central belt.”

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “We will work with the affected sectors – obviously especially hospitality – in the coming days to ensure that this money provides the most help, to those who most need it and gets to them as quickly as possible.

“For the rest of this month, businesses can also use the UK Government’s job retention scheme. However, that now requires a significant contribution from employers – so one of the things we will discuss with businesses, in relation to our own support package, is how we can mitigate some or all of that contribution.”