Lockdown Isn't Working Anymore
Police confirm that officers attended the park after being alerted to the gathering around 4:30pm this afternoon.https://t.co/WZRaqyZBZG
— Glasgow Live (@Glasgow_Live) March 17, 2021
I was over in Kelvingrove Park yesterday afternoon - I half expected to see Patrick Harvie chained to a fence demanding the toughest action from the police, but I saw no sign of the police breaking up the crowds enjoying the sunshine.
Will Nicola condemn the sun worshippers and close the park today?
My money's on 'No".
Lockdown Isn't Working Anymore (12/03/21)
Folks in Glasgow are way ahead of Nicola Sturgeon because they've been ignoring the Covid rule about 'only 2 people can meet up outdoors' for some time.
The First Minister announced the following new rules which apply from today onwards:
- 4 adults from 2 households can meet outdoors
- 12-17 year olds can meet in groups of up to 4 and there is no household limit
- Outdoor non-contact sports for up to 15 people can resume
The only real change I noticed is that from from 26 March onwards 'communal worship' involving up to 50 people can resume - so long as the worshippers observe social distancing.
'Lockdown Isn't Working Anymore' (09/03/21)
Nicola Sturgeon dropped out of the Scottish Government's Covid briefing yesterday, but it appears she is planning to announce a slight relaxation in the 'only 2 people can meet outdoors' rule.
I can't say I'm surprised as no one is paying attention to the rule anyway - see post below dated 09/03/21.
To make matters worse the Scottish Government's road map out of lockdown has gone down very badly with the public because it only goes up to the end of April and has no end in sight.
So the First Minister is being forced to play catch up and accept that it is the Covid vaccine which is now doing all the heavy lifting against the virus and that, to coin a phrase, 'lockdown isn't working anymore'.
Covid, Rules and Scottish Ministers (06/03/21)
I think Nicola Sturgeon ought to leave her chauffeur driven car behind and get out more, if she thinks that the over 50s are the only ones breaking lockdown rules in Scotland.
I am out and about in Glasgow most days and it's been clear for some time that the rule about a maximum of only 2 people from different households meeting outdoors - is being widely ignored across all age groups.
The reality is the Covid vaccine is doing all the heavy lifting in the fight against Coronavirus these days and the latest ScotGov suggestion about relaxing the '2 people outdoors' rules is completely meaningless.
Scotland's Tartan Lockdown Continues (24/02/21)
Scotland's 'tartan lockdown' is set to continue for months according to Nicola Sturgeon and even then life won't look anything like normal, if the Scottish Government gets its way.
By the end of April 2021, if all goes very well, parts of Scotland just 'might' go back into Tier 3 which means putting up with all the same travel and other restrictions (eg the early closing of restaurants, a continued alcohol ban etc) we've all been living with for months.
So the upshot is that the Covid vaccine is now doing all the heavy lifting and the efforts of the Scottish Government to suppress the virus since September 2020 have effectively come to naught, even though ministers keep patting themselves on their backs.
Apparently Groundhog Day is still in vogue in Scotland, perhaps with a few tweaks here and there - see post below dated 17 November 2020.
The only good news is that the Scottish Parliament elections are still scheduled to go ahead on 6th May 2021 despite so many other things being closed, restricted or banned altogether.
Groundhog Day in Glasgow (17/11/20)
Glasgow has been in lockdown lite for months - since early September, in fact, when the Scottish Government banned people from different households meeting-up indoors.
In the first week of October bars and restaurants were also shut down, across the central belt, for an initial period of two weeks - most remain closed to this day though some selling food stayed open on the basis that they were not allowed to sell alcohol.
Today the Scottish Government announced that these measures have not succeeded in slowing the spread of Covid-19 and that we are virtually back to where we started in March - with all non-essential shops being forced to close, again.
The result is, effectively, another full-scale lockdown plus a non-essential travel ban (to be enforced by the police) which will come into place on Friday and last for the three full weeks until 11 December 2020.
So although I didn't hear any words of apology from the politicians (they seem to expect a pat on the back) these new measures smack of real defeat.
Because the politicians have failed to get the 'careful and cautious' message across to the general public and they have clearly been unsuccessful in persuading people to change their behaviour.Instead we are back to a policy of trying to control the spread of the virus by a series of seemingly never ending shutdowns in the Covid equivalent of Groundhog Day.
Coronavirus in Scotland: Glasgow lockdown rules tightened as indoor gatherings banned
Nicola Sturgeon announced that the new restrictions are in place for the City of Glasgow, West Dunbartonshire and East Renfrewshire. She warned that the Scottish Government has not ruled out that they "may have to go further" with the restrictions.
By Laura Ferguson - Glasgow Live
Nicola Sturgeon announces local lockdown restrictions in Glasgow, East Renfrewshire and West Dunbartonshire
Indoor household gatherings within three local authorities in Greater Glasgow and Clyde will be banned from midnight.
In a statement, Nicola Sturgeon confirmed that the new rules are in place in the City of Glasgow, West Dunbartonshire and East Renfrewshire.
It comes as the areas all saw spikes in coronavirus cases, with the First Minister confirming, "transmission appears to mainly be happening inside people's homes and between households".
