Image source, PA Media

• The first minister confirms a further 411 people have tested positive for Covid-19, 2.8% of the tests carried out yesterday
• A further 12 deaths have been recorded in the past 24 hours of people who tested positive in the last 28 days, taking the total by that measurement to 7,596
• As of 7:30 this morning 2,436,398 had received their first dose of the vaccine, while 338,443 have had their second dose
• Progress has been "better than we dared hope for at the turn of the year" says Nicola Sturgeon, but there is "no room for complacency" given an average of 539 new cases per day
• There has been an uptick in cases among the 25-44 age group, according to chief medical officer Dr Gregor Smith
• From Friday, 2 April, the "stay at home" rule will be lifted and replaced with a "stay local" rule - people still have to remain within their local authority area
• Retail click and collect services, hairdressers and barbers can begin operating from Monday, 5 April with appointments, while some students can return to on-campus learning
• All secondary school pupils will return to school full-time after the Easter Holidays
• Further changes from 26 April - restrictions on travel within mainland Scotland, full reopening of retail, a partial reopening of hospitality, and rules on outdoor gatherings - are expected to be confirmed in three weeks

• There has been some "vaccine hesitancy" in Polish and eastern European groups, and some black communities, says national clinical director Jason Leitch

Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross says following the restrictions for so long has not been easy for people.

Given the test positivity rate of 2.8% is well below the 5% that the WHO says is a concern, he looks forward to the easing of restrictions and getting back to some normality.

Mr Ross says the government "could have moved a lot quicker" and the Tories would have allowed all children to return to school earlier.

He says teachers have done an "outstanding job" with online learning so far, but it does not replace face-to-face learning.

Some settings such as gyms could also open earlier given the impact on people's mental health, he says.

"The data clearly says we are getting on top of this virus and could open some areas quicker than is planned," he adds.

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar focuses on Scotland's testing capacity.

He says he would like to see a ramping up of testing in identified Covid "hot spots" and the use of PCR tests in schools.

Currently schools have access to lateral flow tests which are less reliable - and only on a voluntary basis for staff and some pupils.

On the issue of vaccine uptake in BAME communities, Mr Sarwar agrees with Willie Rennie that representation among "message carriers" is a problem.

But he also says we have to "confront WhatsApp groups and social media channels" that target minority communities with "conspiracy theories" about vaccinations.

Alison Johnstone, from the Scottish Greens, says it is "heartening" to see the progress made in tackling Covid in Scotland and welcomes the return to some normality from next week, even if there are still on average around 500 cases every day.

"We are not out of the woods yet but it is great to see some light at the end of the very long tunnel we have all been in," she says.

Ms Johnstone says the Scottish people have done a "fabulous job" in helping to suppress the virus.

"The lower we can keep the virus, the better opportunity we will have to enjoy a summer that looks a bit like previous summers, even though that may not include travel abroad," she says.

The latest ONS figures showing 150,000 Covid deaths in the UK is "very sobering", she adds, and reminds us of the importance of keeping on top of the virus and not allowing it to "run amok".

Scottish Lib Dem leader Willie Rennie says that while Scotland was initially behind the curve in the vaccine rollout, it has caught up with other UK nations.

He adds that while parties are out on the campaign trail, it is important for people to stick to the government advice - which he says most people are.

On the subject of lower vaccine uptake among minority communities, Mr Rennie points to the representation on daily briefings.

He says "every single face is white - we need to make sure that is compensated for by good voices" and "more diverse faces" that represent other communities to make the case for the vaccine.

Linda Bauld, a public health professor at Edinburgh University, tells BBC One Scotland that keeping the positivity rate well below 5% for some weeks now is “really good”.

The latest Office of National Statistics figures estimate that about 21,000 people in Scotland have Covid, a slight rise from previous weeks.

This was expected with schools going back, Prof Bauld says – a combination of parents mixing and more people on public transport.

But overall the return of schools has gone well, she says, with very few outbreaks. She adds that there has been big progress in numbers of people in hospital and intensive care, which are now down to the level seen in October, “which is great”.

National clinical director Jason Leitch says Public Health Scotland has published its "first cut" of ethnicity and vaccination data.

The numbers are still very good in all groups, Prof Leitch says - "we shouldn't over-react" - but there are some groups that warrant special attention.

He says there has been some "vaccine hesitancy" in Polish and other eastern European communities, and some black communities.

Prof Leitch says he has been in discussions with BEMIS - an umbrella organisation for minority-ethic third sector organisations in Scotland - to encourage those groups to come for vaccinations, because they need "trusted voices", he adds.

Dr Gregor Smith says the virus can still have a "profound effect" on younger adults.

He says there has been an uptick in cases among the 25 – 44 age group.

While it is much less likely they will experience hospital, Dr Smith says this outcome is "not unknown", adding if we start to see the general infection rate climbing, it is inevitable that will have a knock on effect on hospital rates.

He urges people of all age groups to follow government advice, highlighting the potential effects of long Covid and the potential for the virus to mutate.

Image source, Getty Images

David Shanks from the BBC asks the first minister if there is concern about more hospitalisations of young people as the economy opens up.

He also asks what can be done to increase vaccine uptake among African and Caribbean communities where rates of uptake are lower.

Ms Sturgeon says there is "always a concern" the virus will spread as people come together and stresses the importance of hygiene.

She says she hopes the impact of the vaccination programme will continue a "downward pressure" on transmission - but adds the concept of long Covid is something "everybody has to bear in mind".

The FM says she is "very aware" of the variable rates of vaccine uptake and will be using "trusted voices" within the population as part of the vaccine awareness campaign. She pointed to actor Lenny Henry who wrote an open letter to black Britons urging them to take the vaccine

Image source, Getty Images

Nicola Sturgeon says the first change will see all secondary school pupils returning to school full-time after the Easter Holidays.

After that, she expects further restrictions to be eased from 26 April. By that time we expect to have offered the vaccine to all the top nine priority groups, she says.

It is expected that all areas which are under level four restrictions will move down to level three from that date.

Other changes will see

• restrictions on travel within mainland Scotland lifted
• a full reopening of retail premises and a partial reopening of hospitality, starting with some outdoors, and a limited amount indoors
• an easing of rules on outdoor gatherings

Ms Sturgeon says she hopes to be able to confirm those changes in a further update in three weeks' time.

The Scottish government will also publish within the next few days updated levels tables on its website, which give more information about the changes expected later in April and into May.

Image source, Alamy

The FM confirms that retail click and collect services, hairdressers and barbers can begin operating from Monday.

Ms Sturgeon says these services will be enforcing appointments and warned people against being "irate" with staff.

Students will also be allowed to return to on campus learning - including construction, engineering, beauty and hairdressing students - among other changes taking effect.

She said she hoped these changes would be "widely welcomed" but they were "deliberately fairly cautious".

She pointed to countries across Europe which are seeing a "big rise in cases" and renewed pressure on health services, which she hopes Scotland will avoid.

The first minister confirms that from 2 April the "stay at home" rule will be lifted, replaced with a "stay local" rule.

This means that people will have more freedom to go outdoors but will have to remain within their local authority area.

Progress in the vaccine programme is "better than we could have dared hoped for", Nicola Sturgeon says, which is why this measure can go ahead.

She says that infection rates are different across the country and there are still people who are unvaccinated - therefore the new rule is designed to avoid further spread of the virus to areas where infection rates are low.

Image source, Getty Images

Despite deaths falling sharply - likely to be as a result of the vaccination programme, the first minister says, and numbers in hospital and intensive care also reducing, we should all remain "hyper vigilant", Ms Sturgeon says.

The number of new cases are now plateauing, rather than declining significantly, she says.

"It is vital that we all continue to bear that in mind and act cautiously, and be careful in the weeks ahead as we gradually start to ease lockdown restrictions," she adds.

As of 7:30 this morning 2,436,398 had received their first dose of the vaccine, an increase of 26,572 since yesterday.

In addition, 12,180 received a second dose yesterday which means total number of second doses given is 338,443.

Virtually everyone in the over-65 category has had a vaccine, and 98% of 60 to 64-year-olds, 81% of 55-59 year-olds and 57% of 50-54 year-olds.

We remain on course to have offered a first dose by mid-April to everyone aged over 50, all unpaid carers and adults with an underlying health condition, says the first minister.

Ms Sturgeon says we have made "very good progress" in the last three months, "better than we dared hope for back at the turn of the year".

There is no room for complacency however, she adds, given Scotland is now averaging 539 new cases per day

Nicola Sturgeon begins her briefing by outlining the latest figures.

The first minister confirms a further 411 people have tested positive for Covid-19, 2.8% of the tests carried out yesterday.

This takes the total number of positive cases in Scotland to 217,890.

Breakdown of cases in health board areas:

·NHS Lothian: 109

·NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde: 94

·NHS Lanarkshire: 76

The remaining cases are spread across seven other health board areas.

There are 250 people in hospital with recently confirmed Covid-19, a decrease of nine, and 23 in intensive care, up one from yesterday.

A further 12 deaths were reported in the past 24 hours of people who tested positive in the last 28 days.

The total number of deaths by that measurement is now 7,596.

Image source, PA Media

Nicola Sturgeon will begin her daily briefing imminently.

The first minister will be joined at the briefing by chief medical officer Dr Gregor Smith and national clinical director Jason Leitch.

You can follow proceedings right here on this live page or watch or listen by clicking one of the tabs above for BBC One Scotland, the BBC Scotland Channel or Radio Scotland.

Stay with us...

• Over the last three days, no deaths have been recorded of people who first tested positive within the previous 28 days.
• As of 7:30am on Monday, 2,409,826 people in Scotland had received their first dose of the Covid vaccine.
• The first Holyrood election debate will take place tonight, but because of the pandemic audiences will attend virtually. You can read about the parties key issues here.
• A new report has suggested that Scotland's economy could regain all ground lost in 2020 as a result of the pandemic within the next two years.
• Irn-Bru maker AG Barr has reported a slump in annual profits after lengthy coronavirus restrictions hit sales in pubs and across the hospitality sector