Drivetime with John Beattie
BBC Radio Scotland

Image source, Getty Images

Weddings are back - and live on the radio! Yes, one of the first ceremonies since lockdown began in March will take place on air during Drivetime, which is just starting on BBC Radio Scotland.

Most shops have been able to open again too and host John Beattie will canvas reaction from customers and owners.

Meanwhile, Drivetime has also been talking to a man who was staying in Glasgow's Park Inn hotel, the scene on Friday when six people, including a police officer, were stabbed and their alleged attacker was shot dead.

Amid calls for an inquiry into the conditions faced by asylum seekers and UK government having responsibility for their treatment, BBC Scotland has asked to speak to a spokesperson from the Home Office.

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There are "no plans" to quarantine people who travel to Scotland from other parts of the UK, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said.

But she said the country had to be "on our guard" to prevent cases of Covid-19 coming in from elsewhere.

And she said Scotland would need to "be able to consider all options" to stop a resurgence if the infection rates "diverge" in different parts of the UK.

Ms Sturgeon has said Scotland is "not far away" from eliminating the virus.

On Monday, she said no coronavirus deaths had been recorded for the fourth successive day.

There were only five new confirmed cases in Scotland, and just 10 patients are currently in intensive care wards.

Read more here.

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Here's the full detail of what's back from today:

• Stores of all sizes will be able to reopen - but only if they have outdoor entrances and exits. Indoor shopping centres must remain closed for now, except where they contain essential shops
• While non-essential offices and call centres must remain closed, factories, laboratories and warehouses will be able to reopen - subject to strict physical distancing, hygiene and health and safety guidance
• Businesses are being advised to arrange staggered work times for their staff, agree flexible working where possible, and ensure that it is safe for their employees to get to work

• Outdoor markets will also be able to open, as will outdoor sports courts and playgrounds.

Image source, bbc

• Zoos and garden attractions will also be able to open again, although you should not travel more than five miles for leisure - and tickets should be bought in advance.
• Restrictions on moving house will be lifted
• Marriages and civil partnerships will be allowed outdoors, with limited numbers, and registration offices will reopen for essential business.

Easing lockdown rules in Scotland: Click here to find out what will change next - and when.

Coronavirus in Scotland: Easing of lockdown, guidance and advice

1. Coronavirus (COVID-19): Scotland's route map - indicative dates for the remainder of Phase 2 and early Phase 3, external

• Easing lockdown rules in Scotland: BBC Scotland article:What will change next - and when?

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Here's the current guidance and regulations in place in Scotland, external

2. Test and Protect, external

If you have Covid-19 symptoms go immediately to NHS Inform online or phone 0800 028 2816 to book a test

3. NHS Inform, external

The latest from NHS Scotland and the Scottish government, including social distancing, face covering and stay at home advice.

4. Clear Your Head, external: It's ok to not feel yourself right now, here's some great tips to help get you through it.people through the pandemic.

Image source, Reuters

Next year's Brit Awards have been pushed back by three months to May, to have a better chance of staging a full live ceremony featuring big pop stars.

The 41st edition of the music awards show was due to take place in February, as usual, at London's O2 Arena.

But uncertainty around the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has prompted the music industry to delay it.

Read more

Graham Fraser
BBC Scotland News website

It was quiet for the most part in Glasgow city centre this morning, as many shops chose to open once again following the easing of coronavirus lockdown restrictions.

Shoppers may have been put off by the rain, but it did get busier - especially around Argyle Street - as it got closer to lunchtime.

While the long queues at Primark will cause the most interest, it is worth noting that the only other places I saw queues for were various tech shops (Apple, Vodaphone and o2), the Barclays bank and Zara. It was, of course, unusual to see people working in shops wearing PPE.

Many other shops were very quiet, with some shopkeepers looking hopeful that they would get some more customers. Quite a few shops - including Hobbs and Tiso - remain closed.

Giancarlo Rinaldi
South Scotland reporter, BBC news website

Jim Ireland, manager of the Loreburn Shopping Centre in Dumfries, said he had seen a noticeable change in the town as many stores reopened.

"It is the busiest I have seen it," he said.

"I have been out and about every day since lockdown just walking up and down the street checking on the numbers seeing what is going on.

"It is very, very noticeable today there were a lot more people about first thing this morning. It is starting to pick up."

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Scottish Labour is to develop plans for a national care service, saying the time has come to reform the sector.

The impact of the coronavirus crisis on care homes shows the need to re-examine ownership of the social care system, the party said.

Currently, care homes are operated by a variety of providers, including private companies and local authorities.

Earlier in June, the trade union Unison called for a national care service to replace the current system.

Labour said it will speak to unions, councils and charities over the summer to move its plans forward.

Graeme Ogston
Tayside and Central Reporter

Louise Brown, co-owner of Forever Curves clothing boutique in Dundee said she was “excited” to reopen after a three-month “nightmare“ closure.

She said: “We’re quite prepared for it, but just a wee bit worried about how quickly it’s going to pick up.

“We’ve been trying to update people through Facebook, but we’ve not done any orders through it, we’ve just been completely closed.

“We’ve got a few regulars who said they might pop in later in the week.”

Image source, @balmoralcastle

Rangers at the Balmoral Estate have found discarded waste and wipes near trails as people have used the ground as a wild toilet.

Staff at the 50,000 acre site, which houses Balmoral Castle and is the Scottish home of the Royal Family, posted pictures of fouling over the weekend next to paths on the Aberdeenshire estate.

Public toilets at the site have been closed, and rangers tweeted, external: "Disappointed to see so many wipes discarded on the Estate today. Next to paths and monuments. Please remember there are no public toilets open for miles around at the moment."

The estate said the toilets near Loch Muick, managed by Aberdeenshire Council, have been closed but that people had been "breaking into them."

"Conditions inside are becoming unsanitary," it added.

• For the fourth day in a row no deaths from coronavirus have been registered in Scotland

• Nicola Sturgeon sets out a UK-wide proposal for an £80bn economic stimulus programme

• The Scottish government report includes suggestions for an employment guarantee for young people and a temporary cut in VAT

• FM begins briefing praising police and health workers’ response to the knife attack at a hotel in Glasgow on Friday

• The Scottish government is still considering its own quarantine proposals after the UK government decided to relax non-essential travel to certain European countries.

• No quarantine plans right now for people coming from rUK into Scotland says FM

• Sturgeon warns if there is ongoing divergence between England and Scotland mitigation of any public health impact would need to be considered
• It is regrettable that there has not been a meeting of the civil contingencies committee Cobra "for weeks" says FM

• Sturgeon again calls on the public to wear a face covering when shopping

The Courier has a question on how local lockdowns may work in the event of any future spikes in the virus.

The first minister says it will depend on the nature of the outbreak. It may be best to limit suppression measures to a particular location, like a care home or a factory, but there could be instances where the level of community transmission is higher, which would mean targeting a wider area.

"What you are trying to do in as narrow a way as possible, but that is as broad as necessary, is to suppress, contain and control, without the need to go back to a blanket lockdown," explains Nicola Sturgeon.

Chief Medical Officer Dr Gregor Smith adds that enhanced data on the virus will allow any future response to be tailored in a more precise way.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

David Ball, from The Herald, asks what response the Scottish government has had from its UK counterpart to its request for greater financial powers and wonders if devolution was not designed to deal with a crisis of this scale.

Finance Secretary Kate Forbes says the devolution settlement was never designed with a pandemic in mind and "in these extraordinary times we need to see some of those rules relaxed".

"I have been in discussion with the Treasury for months about those additional flexibilities, but these are relatively minor in nature that most governments don't have to battle for but can use to maximise the use of their budget," she says.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon points out that, ahead of an announcement tomorrow, Prime Minister Boris Johnson is "talking the language of stimulus" and adds that "we need to see that translated into additional money to make that a reality".

Image source, Reuters

Answering a question from Mark McLaughlin from The Times, Nicola Sturgeon admits there has not been a meeting of the civil contingencies committee Cobra "for weeks" and cannot remember when the last one was held.

"I think that’s regrettable," the first minister says. "I think we should have more opportunities to discuss things on a four nations basis."

"There have been a couple of four nations discussions with the prime minister, there have been four nations discussions that Michael Gove has convened, I have taken part in a couple and Humza Yousaf took part in one this morning."

However, Ms Sturgeon says it would benefit from having discussions "not just about decisions that have already been taken" but "genuine and substantive discussions before the decisions are taken".

Nicola Sturgeon is asked whether the reason so many people are not wearing face coverings is because the Scottish government was too late in asking people to wear them.

The first minister replies: "I don't think that. It is not something people are used to doing unless you work in the health service or some other sectors and it is not the most comfortable thing.

"I think that is probably what is leading some people to still choose not to do so. I will continue to seek to persuade.

"We have made it mandatory on public transport and we may make it mandatory in shops. In the meantime, I will continue to make the argument that, for their own protection, because they get protection from others wearing them, and for everyone wearing them it gives protecting to others, it is something they should do."

Image source, PA

Image source, Reuters

"It's not about going along with rules, it's about doing the right thing - and the vast majority of people get it," says Nicola Sturgeon as The Telegraph suggest travellers won't be happy if the quarantine rules at English airports are different to those in Scotland.

"This is about protecting public health and that is the basis on which I will make decisions," she says.

"A four nations approach is best, if we can agree one. The virus doesn't respect borders or boundaries and we need to work together as closely as we can.

"But a four nations approach is based on all the needs of the nations being the same - and there will be issues there if levels of infection diverge - and the other thing it depends on is the nations being fully involved in the decision-making process.

"We were told the UK government would not take that decision (on air bridges) before a discussion and then they announced it with no discussions with the other three nations at all. We cannot simply be dragged along..."

Christine Lavelle, from The Sun, wonders if the first minister is expecting a rise in cancer deaths as a result of the screening programmes being suspended over the last three months.

Nicola Sturgeon points out that, when the pause was announced three months ago, it was to try to ensure that there was not too much of a delay in people getting their appointments.

"They delay will be very small compared to the situation if we had carried on and people just missed their appointments due to being afraid of coronavirus," she says.

Interim Chief Medical Officer Dr Gregor Smith adds: "Because this has been a paused programme for just a period of three months, I wouldn't envisage in these particular scenarios we're going to see a real rise in the number of presentations for cancer."

Image source, Science Photo Library