Jamie McIvor
BBC Scotland local government correspondent

The GMB union says there is “organised chaos” over what council workers should be doing and whether individuals should be at work.

It says there are examples of contradictory advice being given to individual staff.

The union says it is “ridiculous” that there have been 32 different responses to the crisis and will be holding a meeting with the council umbrella body Cosla this afternoon.

The Scottish Prison Service said 96 prisoners in nine establishments across Scotland were showing symptoms of coronavirus and senior management were considering how to deal with a fast-moving situation.

Among measures under discussion are restricting visits, to enable social distancing to be maintained, and cutting work programmes.

A spokesman said cleaning, laundry and kitchen duties would continue to enable the jails to function as normally as possible.

The Community union, which represents staff at privately-run jails, has renewed its call for a "controlled lock-down" of prisoners.

This would severely restrict the number of prisoners allowed out of their cells at any one time.

Under normal circumstances private prisons would be fined by the SPS for carrying out such a measure, but Community said it was a prudent move to try to halt the spread of coronavirus in what are closed environments.

Image source, SMS

A Scottish energy technology firm has halted all smart meter installations until further notice as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.

Glasgow-based Smart Metering Systems (SMS) said the move was aimed at safeguarding the welfare of its employees and clients.

It added that it would continue to provide "full emergency field support and related activities".

The group has closed all of its offices and warehouses, with a majority of the workforce continuing to work and support customers from home.

It has also introduced increased protection measures, including extra personal protection equipment and strict social distancing guidelines for all field and office-based employees who continue to work.

SMS employs more than 1,200 people at a dozen locations across the UK.

It had 3.7 million meter and data assets under management as of 31 December.

Image source, bbc

Mike Russell addresses confusion about who key workers are and the constitution secretary points out the publication on Friday related to childcare.

The cabinet secretary explains there are other workers who will need to do things, in terms of the food chain for example.

It will take a little bit of time to provide clarity on who can go to work says Mr Russell, who calls for common sense to be applied.

He reiterates that the message is for most people to work at home and says the vast majority of people will operate in a sensible, constructive manner.

In terms of workers transportation, public transport should be avoided where possible, he adds.

That's all we can bring you from this committee at this time, however it should be available to watch again at Scottish Parliament TV, external later.

Asked about construction work, Economy Secretary Fiona Hyslop says the majority should stop but some will be working on key infrastructure that will need to be maintained.

Grant support to help small businesses, including sole traders, will go live today, confirms the economy secretary.

There will need to be clear instructions to builders yards and supply chains, says convener Michelle Ballantyne, who points to some firms being asked to fit dividers at hospitals.

Ms Hyslop agrees that if builders are doing work at hospitals, this is a public health need.

Back to the constitution committee where Tory MSP Murdo Fraser raises the issue of panic buying and asks about how confident the Scottish government is that the food supply will be maintained.

Mr Russell replies: "There is a confidence food supply can be maintained and indeed people need to recognise they should not be panic buying.

"They should not be crowding into shops."

He reiterates the plea to supermarkets to put measures in place to prevent overcrowding and says the list of shops which can remain open has been published and is very clear.

The food supply chain is addressed by the Coronavirus Bill, he adds.

Image source, LIDL

Supermarket chain Lidl has said it will install checkout protection screens across all its stores in the UK from today.

They said the measure would protect staff and customers from coughs and sneezes.

Police Scotland's chief constable Iain Livingstone warns people against disobeying the advice to stay at home.

Economy Secretary Fiona Hyslop told MSPs this morning the vast majority of businesses were “doing the right thing” and that everyone needed to be “be part of the mission to beat the virus.”

People should be working from home and staying home, she adds.

We must keep the number of people taking up childcare spaces to an “absolute minimum”, she says, adding the government is working with local authorities to help identify key workers.

Mr Russell tells MSPs: "If you can do your job from home, do your job from home."

He calls on employers to "bust a gut" to facilitate that, and calls for people to use their common sense.

"Employers need to think creatively about this."

Guidance will be published online shortly, the cabinet secretary adds.

The constitution committee is taking evidence from the constitution secretary on the legislative consent memorandum on the 329-page emergency bill, external, which passed through the House of Commons last night.

The bill gives the government wide-ranging powers, unlike any other recent legislation.

• Click here to find out what's in the emergency Coronavirus legislation.

Image source, bbc

Mike Russell tells the committee: "The intention of this legislation is to try and keep you, your communities and your country safe and to make sure we work our way through this."

He says this is a UK wide bill but there are specific Scottish items to be debated this afternoon, he explains and he points out there will be further legislation at Holyrood next week.

The cabinet secretary calls on everyone to "follow the rules to the letter."

You can watch the committee with Parliament TV here., external

The government has passed all stages of their 329-page emergency bill, external through the House of Commons.

It's up for debate in the Scottish Parliament this afternoon, so here's some of the key measures:

• the power to restrict events and shut down premises such as pubs
• powers to isolate or detain individuals who are judged to be a risk to containing the spread of Covid-19
• facilitate the return of retired nurses, midwives, paramedics and social workers
• relaxing rules around detention under mental health laws
• increasing the use of audio and video links in courts
• officials will have the power to close the borders
• the bill will allow employers to reclaim statutory sick pay funds from HMRC to help with the burden of increased staff absence
• organisations could be required to provide space or resources for the storage or management of dead bodies

Read more here.

Image source, Science Photo Library

Scientists hope to be able to continue the world's longest running study of a red deer population.

The Rum Red Deer Project started in 1972, but there have been studies of the Hebridean island's deer since 1953.

The research includes information on the effects of climate change on the animals.

Researchers involved in the work live on Rum and hope they might be able to continue a "cut down" monitoring programme, with precautions in line with efforts to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Giancarlo Rinaldi
South Scotland reporter, BBC news website

Image source, MJ Richardson

Families in the Borders have been urged by the local health board to discuss their wishes should they become seriously unwell.

NHS Borders said many people found it "very difficult" to have such conversations.

However, it said medics in the region and across the UK were now urging people to have a talk about what they would want if they, or their loved ones, became seriously unwell with coronavirus.

Associate medical director Dr Annabel Howell said hospital was often not the best place to be and people may want to stay at home.

"If you don't have these conversations and the worst does happen it would be terrible if your loved one suddenly became unwell and couldn't speak for themselves," she said.

"That is why we are encouraging people to have these conversations, just in case."

Dr Lynn McCallum, clinical director for unscheduled care added: "The coronavirus crisis underlines the need to have these difficult conversations, that we often put off, to express what our wishes are and what is most important to us."

Steven McKenzie
BBC Scotland Highlands and Islands reporter

Image source, DSRL

Numbers of workers at the Dounreay nuclear power site in Caithness are being limited following government calls for people to stay at home.

The site, near Thurso, is being decommissioned and its buildings demolished.

Its facilities include Scotland's oldest reactor, the 62-year-old Dounreay Materials Test Reactor (DMTR).

Dounreay has been restricted to workers involved in closing down the site, security personnel and fire and ambulance crews.

Edinburgh Council is urging people to follow these extra steps in order to protect its crews collecting household waste.

Ken Banks
BBC Scotland North East and Northern Isles reporter

The Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) has said the coronavirus pandemic has hit the industry in the UK "hard".

The OGA said the aim was to safeguard both the energy supply and the thousands of jobs which help deliver it.

Chief executive Andy Samuel said: "The scale of the challenge is considerable."

Image source, OGA

This year's Fort William Mountain Bike World Cup has been cancelled.

The event at Nevis Range was due to be held in June.

Previous years had seen it involve more 200 riders from all over the world and about 22,000 spectators over its weekend of competitions.