First minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon is now up on the BBC.
She says the decisions over the government easing measures in England is a matter for them, with her government taking a “cautious path” through the pandemic. “We have learnt from experience that this virus is unpredictable.”
Raworth says infection rates are roughly the same in Scotland and England, have the stricter restrictions in Scotland worth it?
“Overall throughout this pandemic, levels of infection have been lower in Scotland.
“Yes, I think they were worth it. I know that they have had a big impact on businesses and individuals. While I understand the Scotland/England comparison, it’s not the most important one.
“What’s important is are we in a better position than we would have been without these restrictions? It’s hard to absolutely prove cause and effect, but if you look at what we were predicting through our modelling, what we were on track for, 50,000 infections a day, we didn’t see that materialise.
“That was a combination of an acceleration of our booster programme, Scotland is the most vaccinated part of the UK … these sensible balanced protective measures introduced before Christmas, and the magnificent responsible response from the public who have changed their behaviour. We are hopefully now seeing Scotland very firmly on the downward slope.”