Image source, Getty Images

About £700,000 of funding has been announced to help museums and galleries which have felt the serious impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

The urgent response fund will be open for applications from Wednesday with many independent venues at risk with restrictions introduced across the country.

Organisational body Museums Galleries Scotland has suspended regular funding programmes until further notice to allow for flexibility during the uncertainty brought by the Covid-19 outbreak.

The majority, £400,000, will support accredited, independent museums that care for recognised collections with the remaining £300,000 supporting non-recognised collections.

Lucy Casot, chief executive of Museums Galleries Scotland said: "The unprecedented situation caused by Covid-19 has far-reaching implications for Scotland's museums and galleries.

"The timing is hitting particularly hard as the Easter season is a major and vital income generator for many and the funding from the Scottish government will be a welcome lifeline to those who need it at this time."

Politics Scotland is just getting under way on BBC One Scotland. You can watch it right here via the link above.

“It probably won’t be bad news,” Professor Jason Leitch, the Scottish government's national clinical director, told BBC Scotland's Off The Ball programme.

Have a listen to what else Prof Leitch had to say in answering listeners' questions around coronavirus.

As well as the controversy over the movements of Scotland's chief medical officer, the country's Sunday newspapers also focus on the trial of former First Minister Alex Salmond, the 'fears' of the mother of current First Minister Nicola Sturgeon as she observes her daughter leading the response to the coronavirus crisis, and the Queen's broadcast to the nation this evening.

Take a look at what other stories are making the headlines this morning.

Image source, Scottish Sun

Scotland's chief medical officer has been photographed visiting her family's second home in Fife - despite herself issuing advice to stay at home.

Photos of Dr Catherine Calderwood and her family near a coastal retreat in Earlsferry have been published in The Scottish Sun.

Just days earlier, the 51-year-old tweeted a photo of her family from their main residence in Edinburgh -- as they clapped for front-line NHS staff working to stop the spread of Covid-19.

The Scottish Government says she followed social-distancing guidance.

Good morning and welcome to live coverage of developments in Scotland around the coronavirus crisis on Sunday 5 April.

A total of 218 people have died from Covid-19 in hospitals in Scotland so far, although the overall number of deaths will be higher, with 13 people who died in a Glasgow care home among those not included in official figures because they occurred in the community.

A further update on figures is expected from the Scottish Government this afternoon, with 3,345 people testing positive for Covid-19 so far.

The Queen is also scheduled to address the nation this evening, at 20:00 BST, when she will urge the public to maintain "self-discipline" and "quiet, good-humoured resolve" in a pre-recorded broadcast.