Face coverings to be made mandatory in shops
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
FACE coverings will be mandatory in shops in Scotland from Friday, July 10.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said the move will help reduce the risk of transmission of Covid-19 indoors.
Face coverings are already mandatory on public transport.
The only exemptions in shops will be children under five and people with certain medical exemptions.
"As we start to interact more it is vital we take steps to reduce the risk. This is an important way for us to protect each other," she said.
Pavement cafes and beer gardens can open from this Monday, July 6.
Self-contained holiday cottages and caravans can open from Friday, July 3.
The First Minister also lifted the five mile travel rule for recreation and leisure, with the exception of Dumfries, Gretna and Annan, where there has been a cluster of coronavirus cases.
The general distancing guidance remains two metres but when phase three starts to begin from the end of next week, there will be exemptions for hospitality, retail and public transport.
In these areas, the distance can go down to one metre, as long as there are mitigating measures such as enhanced ventilation, perspex screens, regulation of customer flow and seating plans.
There will be different mitigation measures for different sectors such as restaurants, bars and hairdressers.
Beer gardens which open this Monday will initially have to adhere to the two metre rule.
The rules are changing for the interaction of young people.
All children 11 years and under can now meet their friends outdoors without the need for social distancing, however, this should be in groups of eight or less and from no more than two households.
However, for young people aged 12-17 years the physical distancing rules remain in place and they are being asked to meet outdoors, with a limit of eight people from three different households.
