Mornings with Kaye Adams
BBC Radio Scotland

Image source, SNS

Evie Jack is an advanced nurse practitioner with NHS Highlands and thinks it's time to wrap up the clap for carers after 10 weeks.

"When it started it was wonderful and it made an enormous difference to everybody who was doing their bit at a time when we were all scared to go out," she tells BBC Radio Scotland.

"But now, personally, I think it's time to stop. It has become a bit of political gimmick. I think it's important not to turn something that has been so positive into some kind of political negative.

"It's been a good excuse to go out once a week and check up on each other and remind our neighbours that we're doing okay, that we are all in it together - and that has been massively beneficial.

"However, I also worry that it's become a social taboo not to go out and clap."

Image source, Getty Images

Scotland's first minister is expected to confirm that the country's lockdown restrictions are to be eased slightly.

Nicola Sturgeon unveiled a four phase "route map" last week which was aimed at restarting society while suppressing the virus.

A formal review of the lockdown will almost certainly give the green light to the first phase being introduced.

Ms Sturgeon will make an announcement on the easing measures in her daily briefing at 12:30.

The first minister has previously said that the first steps in the process will be "proportionate and suitably cautious", and will be focused on outdoor activities.

The move will be accompanied by the launch of a nationwide "test and trace" strategy, which will see everyone who has had close contact with a person who tests positive for the virus having to self-isolate for 14 days.

• Read more here
• How will the new test and trace strategy work?
• How lockdown rules differ across the UK

Holyrood Live
BBC Parliaments

Deputy First Minister John Swinney explains the decision to progress to phase one of easing lockdown, the government wants to see evidence of transmission being controlled.

This would be the R-number being below one for three weeks, he says.

An R-number under one means each infected person passes the virus on to less than one person on average.

Nicola Sturgeon is expected to confirm that the country's lockdown restrictions are to be eased slightly. Join us at 12.30pm for extensive coverage.

• What is the R number and how is it calculated?

Andrew Black
BBC Scotland Business Presenter

Scottish hotel owners are trying to work out if they might be able to open, at least partially, for part of the peak summer tourist season - but it’s a huge challenge.

Chris Wayne-Wills, chief executive of the Crerar Hotels chain, said he’s hoping to re-open in July, based on the Scottish government’s plan to ease lockdown restrictions.

He’s currently working out how to deal with the challenge of social distancing, which means having to reduce customer numbers, source personal protective equipment and introduce new procedures for checking in guests and keeping them safe in other ways.

He told the BBC’s Good Morning Scotland programme: “The reality is the cost of re-opening. For a company of our scale that’s close to £200,000.”

Mr Wayne-Wills also called for more longer-term government financial support for hotels, saying it could be Spring 2021 before the industry recovers.

David Allison
Good Morning Scotland report

In normal times, schools would still be busy with students sitting the last of their Higher and Advanced Higher exams and looking forward to the rite of passage of leaving school for the last time.

But their school careers are petering out with a whimper, no exams to be taken, no last year dance to attend, and uncertainty about what to do next.

"I think it is quite hard to make a decision because at the moment no-one really knows what to expect," says Ailsa Appleton, from Monifieth High School, near Dundee.

She is aiming to study Veterinary Medicine at Edinburgh University but she is disappointed that her first year will be blighted by Covid-19.

Face-to-face teaching was suspended in March in line with Scottish government Covid-19 lockdown advice and universities moved to delivering online and remote learning.

Holyrood Live
BBC Parliaments

Meanwhile the Equalities and Human Rights Committee is taking evidence on the impact of Covid-19 on equalities and human rights.

MSPs will quiz representatives from Age Scotland, the Scottish Human Rights Commission, Shakti Women’s Aid, Engender and Scottish Womens.

You can watch that committee now with Scottish Parliament TV, external.

Holyrood Live
BBC Parliaments

Image source, bbc

As the country awaits the expected announcement from Nicola Sturgeon that lockdown restrictions are to be eased slightly, MSPs will now take evidence on how we'get to the 'new normal'.

The Covid-19 Committee will now question Deputy First Minister John Swinney on the route map out of lockdown

The meeting will enable MSPs to examine the government’s plans, including changes to the rules on seeing family and friends, pupils returning to school, and allowing businesses to reopen.

Read the committee papers here., external

Ms Forbes is asked if it is possible there could be a localised lockdown in parts of the country where the infection rate is higher.

Good Morning Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland

Ms Forbes says she understands that businesses will be hoping for more long-term support from the government.

But she reiterates that her budget is fixed and, unlike the UK government, the Scottish government cannot borrow.

"If I can do more to support businesses and tourism, then I absolutely will," she says.

Good Morning Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland

Businesses have asked for clear dates on when they will be able to fully reopen. Ms Forbes is asked if it will be phase three of the government's lockdown plan before hotels and restaurants see restrictions lifted.

Good Morning Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland

Ms Forbes says £972m of funding "has gone out the door already" in business rates relief to the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors.

"They won't have to pay for a whole year which is obviously quite expensive from our perspective but hopefully will be really valuable for them," she says.

"Separately, we have the grants schemes - and we have allocated £1.2bn to fund those. Businesses continue to apply and we continue to make tweaks."

Image source, Getty Images

Good Morning Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland

Kate Forbes says the £2.3bn Scotland has received in business support from the UK Treasury is welcome, but there remains uncertainty about how Scotland is able to manage its own spending during the pandemic.

Good Morning Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland

The first minister is expected to announce lockdown restrictions being eased later today. But the cost of Scottish government measures to combat coronaviurs is "£4bn and rising"

Finance Secretary Kate Forbes tells BBC Scotland that "we don't need a budget review" to know that a health crisis has led to an economic crisis.

Good Morning Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland

Scottish hotel owners are also concerned about whether they can open again this summer and make enough money under social distancing restrictions.

Chris Wayne-Wills, CEO of Crerar Hotels, tells BBC Scotland that reduced capacity in bars and restaurants because of the two-metre rule will be "challenging".

Mr Landsburgh says he hopes the idea of so-called air bridges - where people are allowed to move between designated countries - can be introduced. If not, he believes it could have a devastating impact on tourism.

Good Morning Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland

An alliance of some of the UK's largest tourism businesses have told the Home Secretary that "people do not want to be prevented from travelling".

They are calling on Priti Patel to abandon plans for a two-week quarantine period for people arriving in the country.

Andrew Landsburgh is from the CoDE Hostels group which has just invested £7m in a new building on Edinburgh's Royal Mile.

He told BBC Scotland the quarantine is "unworkable" and sends out "the wrong kind of message" to business.

Good Morning Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland

Animal charities say that, since lockdown began, there has been a "massive" increase in the number of people searching online to buy puppies - and the prices that are being charged.

Paula Boyden, veterinary director at the Dogs Trust, says there is a major concern about when new owners start going back to work. Will the dogs still be a priority?

Image source, Kenneth Barr

Golf is one of the sports which is expected to resume as the lockdown restrictions start to ease in Scotland.

Over the last two months many empty courses have become a well-trodden path for walkers and dog owners - so what happens when golfers return to the fairways?

Some courses have welcomed locals to explore their grounds during lockdown, earning the gratitude of families like the Dawsons.

Dad Peter said they had decided to stay away from Rouken Glen Park in East Renfrewshire after it got "crazy busy".

Instead, they have been exercising at the nearby Cathcart Castle golf course.

Read more here.