Boris Johnson’s language of late seems to be an exercise in managing expectations, and remarkably for once Nicola Sturgeon seems to be following his example.
During the First Minister’s Covid update address to MSPs at Holyrood on Tuesday, she was candid in stressing it was “hard to overstate the necessity of being careful, cautious and gradual as we exit this lockdown”. Very reminiscent of Mr Johnson’s recent tone.
The First Minister then got down to setting out expectations of holidays in 2021. As you can hear in the video tweet below, Easter holidays will not be possible in Scotland, and summer holidays will depend upon infection rates and wider data nearer the time.
Nicola Sturgeon has urged people in Scotland to not book Easter holidays as it is “highly unlikely” that hotels or self-catering accommodation will be open by then.
Read more ➡️ https://t.co/tRoXUEKqZG pic.twitter.com/UUT4yC3IWv
— BBC Scotland News (@BBCScotlandNews) February 16, 2021
Scotland is endeavouring to close all international travel to minimise the risk of Covid-19 crossing Scottish borders. With a tougher line taken than England on international arrivals, not just red list countries, but all.
SNP Finance Secretary Kate Forbes MSP earlier this week announced hospitality businesses in Scotland are to have their rates waived for a further year. The announcement was made however with the caveat “providing the UK Budget in March delivers the funding we require”.
All hospitality businesses across the UK must hope that Rishi Sunak does provide Kate Forbes, as well as all the devolved nations with the funding to keep hospitality businesses in ‘hibernation’ during extended periods of restrictions. If the reopening roadmap and timetables expected to be announced on Monday are correct, further funding will be essential.
With Boris for all intents and purposes holding the purse strings to all four nations, Nicola now doing a Boris could just see Arlene, Michelle and Mark following suit.
If as a consequence of, a combination in increased funding alongside tighter restrictions enables hospitality in Scotland to reopen earlier that their counterparts in England, temporarily doing a Boris may well then be judged as canny.
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Hospitality & Catering News: Nicola doing a Boris. – 19 February 2021 – Nicola doing a Boris.
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