The first minister stresses the ongoing need for staying at home, physical distancing and face coverings.

She adds: "I am afraid we will also have to accept that the price of greater domestic normality is likely to be, for a period at least, not going on holiday overseas."

"Stay at home. Protect the NHS. Save lives," she concludes.

The first minister says those who work in schools, and in early learning and childcare settings attached to schools, will be offered at home testing twice a week.

All senior phase secondary school students will be offered this too.

This testing offer will be in place for schools as soon as possible to support their return, and it will be extended it to the wider childcare sector in the weeks after that.

Image source, Getty Images

The first minister highlights: "The government’s determination to use every single inch of headroom that we have to get children back to school, even if that means adults living with restrictions for longer."

The cabinet has decided that if everyone agrees to abide with the lockdown restrictions for a bit longer "we can begin a phased, albeit gradual, return to school from 22 February."

The intention is to see:

• A full-time return of early learning and childcare for all children below school age
• A full-time return to school for pupils in primaries 1 to 3
• A part-time return, but on a very limited basis, for senior phase pupils to allow in school practical work that is necessary for the completion of national qualification courses
• Initially, though, it is intended that there will be no more than around 5% to 8% of a secondary school roll physically present at any one time for these purposes
• Small increases in existing provision for children and young people with significant additional support needs

The first minister says: "We will confirm these decisions in two weeks’ time."

"I can therefore confirm today that we will be extending eligibility for the £500 self isolation payment to everyone on an income below the level of the real living wage," announces the first minister.

Image source, Getty Images

• The regular testing of healthcare workers will be expanded to cover primary care workers in patient facing roles such as GPs, dentists, optometrists, and pharmacists
• From mid February, regular testing will also be available to all staff who work directly with patients in hospices
• Regular testing in other health settings, such as addiction and mental health services will also be expanded
• Targeted testing will support some essential public service functions, including emergency service control rooms and NHS24
• Some industries such as food production and distribution will see routine testing
• There will be an expansion of targeted community testing where testing is made available to everybody in a local area, regardless of whether or not they have symptoms.
• Community schemes have already been agreed across seven local authorities, within the health board areas of Fife, Grampian and Ayrshire and Arran
• In addition, mobile testing units are already being used for targeted, community testing in Ayrshire Arran, Dumfries Galloway, Scottish Borders and Forth Valley

The first minister says the Scottish government cannot unilaterally implement immediate managed quarantine for people who arrive in other parts of the UK before travelling on to Scotland.

So it will continue to urge the UK government to adopt a comprehensive approach, Ms Sturgeon says.

If they do not wish to follow Scotland's lead, ministers will ask the UK government to "work with us to reduce the risk amongst people travelling to Scotland via ports elsewhere in the UK", she adds.

More detail will be set out about how the managed quarantine system will operate as soon as possible.

Image source, Getty Images

Nicola Sturgeon says it is essential that as well as suppressing the virus within Scotland, we also guard against fresh importation of cases from overseas, particularly as the virus mutates with new, more infectious and severe variants.

The four UK nations have agreed that travellers coming into the UK. from countries with a travel ban in place will be required to quarantine in hotels.

But the first minister says this does not go far enough, because very few people are coming from countries with a ban in place anyway, and people could arrive into the UK via another country.

She also says the UK approach is "too reactive" - because often by the time a new variant has been identified through genomic sequencing, it will already have spread across borders.

The Scottish government, therefore, intends to introduce a managed quarantine requirement for anyone who arrives directly into Scotland, regardless of which country they have come from.

The first minister says that just under 35,000 first dose vaccinations were carried out yesterday - the highest daily number so far and 55% higher than last Monday.

"It is right though that all of this is subject to close and ongoing scrutiny," she says. "And we will continue to provide the daily figures that allow that to happen."

"We are making good, rapid progress in protecting those who are most at risk from Covid," Ms Sturgeon says.

The first minister accepts there will be legitimate questions today about the overall number of vaccinations in Scotland compared with other parts of the UK.

We already saw that certainty evinced by Daniel Johnson during topical questions.

The first minister insists: "We have been trying to achieve as high an uptake as possible in the top priority groups and we believe we are achieving a higher uptake than elsewhere.

" So for example, we haven’t just offered vaccination to all older people in care homes, we have achieved an actual uptake of 98% amongst residents and 88% amongst staff working in older people’s care homes."

Image source, PA Media

The first minister echoes the latest statistics that her health secretary outlined a few minutes ago.

She also says:

• 21% of over 75-year-olds have already received their first dose
• On track to have all over 70 year-olds, and all adults who are classed as being especially clinically vulnerable, vaccinated with the first dose by the middle of this month
• Vaccination of the 65 to 69 age group is also under way from this week
• Those aged 60 to 64, and unpaid carers, will start to receive appointments from the third week of February.

Nicola Sturgeon says some pupils will begin a phased return to school on 22 February.

• It will see a full-time return of early learning and childcare for all children below school age
• a full-time return to school for pupils in primaries 1 to 3
• and a part-time return, on a very limited basis, for senior phase pupils to allow work that is necessary for the completion of national qualification courses.
• Initially, though, it is intended that there will be no more than around 5% to 8% of a secondary school roll physically present at any one time for these purposes.

Nicola Sturgeon's cabinet has reached the conclusion that the lockdown restrictions must stay in place until at least the end of February.

The first minister is "cautiously optimistic" that "we may be able to begin looking towards a careful and gradual easing around the start of March."

"I will give an update on that in two weeks," she says.

Nicola Sturgeon confirms she intends to introduce a "managed quarantine requirement" for anyone who arrives directly into Scotland, regardless of which country they have come from.

This goes further than the UK quarantine rules.

More details will be available soon.

"To date, there have been five cases of the new South African variant identified in Scotland," the first minister says.

"However, all of these have links to travel which means that there is no evidence so far of community transmission of that variant. "

The first minister says: "This progress is down to compliance with the lockdown restrictions."

She warns of the fragility of the situation.

"That means that if we were to ease restrictions too quickly, there is a real risk that infections would rise again very quickly," she says.

She says that risk is increased by the new variants of Covid.

The first minister says case numbers remain too high, however there is further evidence the lockdown restrictions are working.

Ms Sturgeon says average daily case numbers have more than halved in the last three weeks.

She also highlights better test positivity percentages.

However, pressure on the NHS remains severe, she adds.

The first minister says hospital admissions appear to have peaked in this wave on the 12th of January.