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The first minister told MSPs the Scotitish government website now had updated guidance on shielding, external.

This has more detail about tomorrow's changes and the changes the first minister hoped would be brought in during the rest of July.

Measures to protect people shielding in Scotland because of a pre-existing medical condition are to be eased this week.

From Friday, those who are shielding will no longer have to distance themselves from the people they live with.

Ms Sturgeon said: "The changes that will take place tomorrow are important and I hope that they will make a difference to the quality of life of people who are shielding."

She also agreed to talk to hospitality sectors about the possibility of creating safe zones for people who are shielding.

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From 15 July, places of worship can also reopen for communal prayer, congregational services and contemplation.

Numbers will be strictly limited:

• Two metres physical distancing will be required
• There will be a requirement to collect the contact details and time of attendance of those entering a place of worship
• Given what is known of transmission risks, singing and chanting will also be restricted
• Restrictions on attendance at services and ceremonies for funerals, weddings and civil partnerships will be eased
• However numbers will be even more limited than for worship generally and physical distancing will be required
• Associated gatherings – such as wakes or receptions - must continue to follow the limits on household gatherings and hospitality.

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More rules are being relaxed as Scotland enters phase three of the route map for easing the lockdown, external.

People will be able to meet other households indoors from Friday, and face coverings will become compulsory in shops. Pubs, restaurants, holiday accommodation, hairdressers and barbers are expected to reopen from next Wednesday.

So what is due to happen next - and when? Find out everything you need to know about the changes coming here.

Drivetime with John Beattie
BBC Radio Scotland

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It's been a big day with Scotland's first minister announcing that the country is clear to move to the next level of lockdown easing, but Drivetime, starting at 16:00 BST, finds that not everyone is happy.

Private massage therapists thought they would be able to restart their businesses until a letter last night from the Scottish government told them otherwise.

One therapist tells BBC Radio Scotland the government is prioritising pulling pints over easing people's pain.

Dentists also warn that routine appointments are still some time away, but host John Beattie talks to some for whom today's announcement brought better news - including couples who don't live together and no longer need to physically distance outdoors.

Hugs all round for the Scottish government? A member of the independent SAGE scientific group gives an assessment.

Image source, Reuters

Back to questions to the first minister and the SNP MSP Annabelle Ewing pointed to reports from the World Health Organisation that the virus may remain in the air longer than previously thought.

Ms Ewing wondered if the first minister would therefore encourage the public to wear face coverings "in any location where they feel unsafe as well as shops and public transport".

"Yes, I would," Nicola Sturgeon replied while pointing out it was not yet a definitive statement but a response to an opinion from "a large number of scientists".

"That they are looking further into the issue of possible airborne transmission is of serious and significant concern," the first minister said,stressing that, if the WHO were to confirm that evidence, it would have serious implications for Scottish government policy.

"It underlines the importance of wearing face coverings in enclosed spaces."

Earlier Donald Cameron said Rishi Sunak's "ambitious" plan would directly benefit Scottish workers and businesses.

The Tory MSP was responding to the statement from the finance secretary and said: "Far from bypassing devolution, this is devolution working."

The UK government, he said, continues to inject "unprecedented funds" into the Scottish economy.

He added that it was "still not enough for the SNP government" - even though the chancellor's plans had been praised by the likes of the Federation of Small Businesses, the Scottish Chambers of Commerce and the Scottish Tourism Alliance.

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Mr Lochhead has published a plan whch provides a summary of the actions to help address the challenges that colleges and universities in Scotland are facing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Further and Higher Education Sustainability plan , externalpoint out colleges and universities can come through this unprecedented crisis and be key players in the nation’s recovery.

The minister announces a further £5m to help address the digital divide students face.

The minister says he is pleased Scotland's colleges and universities will be open after the summer.

He stresses the safety of staff and students remains the absolute priority.

Mr Lochhead tells the chamber the government has to end free education for new EU students from 2021/2022, due to Brexit.

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Further and Higher Education Minister Richard Lochhead is giving an update about support for colleges and universities during the pandemic.

The number of people from countries outside Europe who have applied for a place at a Scottish university has gone up despite the coronavirus pandemic.

You can watch the statement here with us.

Image source, Scottish Parliament TV

The Scottish Conservative MSP Donald Cameron has said there "remains a significant disparity" for those buying properties in Scotland compared to England and Northern Ireland.

He said that while Kate Forbes had announced a cut to the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax, it was not comparable with the UK government's stamp duty cut.

Mr Cameron said that the delay in bringing in the cut in Scotland - which Ms Forbes earlier attributed to administrative issues - would be an incentive for those buying to delay purchasing their homes.

He asked her to explain why this could not be brought in immediately, and why there would not be a fully equivalent cut.

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While the UK government's economic update showed that it was willing to act, Kate Forbes said she would continue to press for action to better meet the needs of Scotland in areas where the Scottish government did not have the relevant powers.

Most of the funding announced by the chancellor yesterday "bypasses devolution", she said.

Ms Forbes added that her government would continue to liaise constructively with the UK government.

She reiterated her call for more powers for Holyrood.

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Kate Forbes says that she will raise the starting threshold for paying the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax for residential properties from £145,000 to £250,000.

For administrative reasons, the change will not come into force immediately.

However, the finance secretary told MSPs it would be brought in as soon as possible.

The announcement came after the chancellor said yesterday there would be a temporary holiday on stamp duty on the first £500,000 of all property sales in England and Northern Ireland.

Kate Forbes has told parliament that she welcomed elements of the chancellor's statement yesterday.

However, she criticised the scale of the plan and its "short-lived" initiatives and called for something that is more in line with the package of support offered in Germany.

"While I support certain measures... much of the rest falls short of what I believe is needed to boost the economy and protect jobs", she said.

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Finance Secretary Kate Forbes will give a formal response to yesterday's summer statement from the chancellor at 14:30 BST.

Ms Forbes told Radio Scotland this morning there were "elements to welcome" in the UK government's £30bn plan.

But she believes the measures "fall well short of what is needed to boost the economy and protect jobs".

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People in Scotland will be able to visit other households indoors and stay overnight as the country enters the next phase of easing the lockdown.

Nicola Sturgeon said coronavirus had been suppressed to a "low level".

People will be allowed to meet up in extended groups outdoors, and with two other households indoors, from Friday.

Exemptions to the 2m (6ft 6in) physical distancing rule will also be introduced from 10 July, although the use of face coverings in shops will be mandatory.

Couples who do not live together will no longer have to physically distance from Friday onwards, and dates have been set in the coming weeks for the reopening of bars and restaurants, hairdressers and barbers, and the tourist industry.

The first minister said it was still "essential that we all take the utmost care and strictly follow all public health advice", warning that "we mess with [coronavirus] at our peril".

Read more here.

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From Wednesday 15 July:

• Indoor hospitality in pubs and restaurants will return on "a limited basis" and subject to several conditions
• It is essential that the guidance on health and safety is followed rigorously including customer contact details
• Where mitigating measures are in place the exemption from the 2m rule is allowed

• All holiday accommodation permitted (following relevant guidance)

• Museums, galleries, cinemas, monuments, libraries can reopen - with physical distancing and other measures
• All childcare providers can open subject to individual provider arrangements
• Hairdressers and barbers will be able to reopen - with enhanced hygiene measures - guidance will be published later this week

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Here's a quick recap on when the latest easing of restrictions will come into force.

From Monday 13 July:

• Non-essential shops inside shopping centres will be able to reopen
• Children and young people will also be allowed to play organised outdoor contact sports
• Dentists will be able to see patients for some routine treatments, and optometrists can begin to scale up work
• A woman can have a designated person accompany them to ante and post natal appointments
• In addition to their birth partner, they can designate one other person to attend the birth and make ante and post natal ward vists

Scottish Liberal Democrats leader Willie Rennie echoes his Scottish Green Party counterpart in pointing out that 80% of childminders fear for their jobs because of lockdown.

"Thousands are being asked to go back to work without child care arrangements in place, so I am relieved that finally we may have something that might work," he says of the announcement of a return of services.

However, he has concerns about the announced delay in planned childcare expansion.

"I understood that, because the construction industry had shut, that many of the nurseries could not be built or refurbished in time for the expansion in August, but I was surprised to learn that nursery expansion has therefore been delayed for a year," he says

"Why does a three-month lockdown result in a 12-month delay for parents, carers and children right across the country?"

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon suggests that some local authorities will be able to deliver the expansion "closer to the original timescale".

"We will take every opportunity to accelerate this when we can and will work with local authorities to do that," she adds.