Further restrictions on Scottish hospitality to be dropped from Monday

Further restrictions on hospitality businesses in Scotland will be dropped from Monday 24 January, including the limits on indoor event attendance, the requirement for one-metre distancing and table service for hospitality premises serving alcohol, and the closure of nightclubs.

Speaking in Holyrood this afternoon, first minister Nicola Sturgeon said the country was "now in the downward slope of the wave of cases", however she urged people to "remain cautious" in their social interactions and "keep gatherings as small as circumstances allow" until the end of the month.

The Scottish government has retained work from home guidance but will engage with businesses to map a return to a ‘hybrid approach' from the start of February.

Hospitality businesses were also told to continue collecting contact details for guests, and Covid certification is to be retained for late night venues and large events.

Sturgeon announced that the government had decided it would "not be proportionate at this stage" to extend Covid certification to other hospitality premises, however this could be reconsidered should circumstances change.

She also said that legislation regarding nightclubs and late-night venues would be amended from Monday, meaning venues will not be able to put tables on a dancefloor "and claim it is not a dancefloor while permitting dancing to take place".

The Scottish Hospitality Group, which has been calling for the removal of restrictions, said 24 January would be too late for many operators, with many still waiting on grant funds.