Coronavirus: Confirmed Scottish cases rise to 121

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Scotland has risen to 121.

Saturday's figures rose by 36 in 24 hours - the highest daily rise so far - after the country suffered its first fatality on Friday.

The elderly patient in the Lothian NHS area had existing underlying medical conditions.

A total of 3,715 people have been tested in Scotland. Across the UK, 798 people have been confirmed as positive and 10 more people have died.

The total number of UK deaths is now 21.

The rise in cases came as Glasgow University confirmed three people had tested positive for coronavirus and were now in self-isolation.

It is not yet clear whether they are students or staff, but university staff are working with Health Protection Scotland and said the campus would remain open.

The university has already followed other Scottish institutions in suspending face-to-face teaching to slow the spread of coronavirus.

On Friday, St Andrews University said a student who had recently been in Switzerland had also tested positive.

'Routine stuff will have to wait'

The Scottish government has asked members of the public to visit the NHS 24 website www.nhsinform.scot rather than phoning NHS 24 as the telephone helpline is being swamped by calls.

Prof Jason Leitch, Scotland's national clinical director, said: "NHS 24 is experiencing a significant increase in calls today. We would appreciate the public's help.

"If you are experiencing mild symptoms and/or self isolating you do not need to contact NHS 24 or your GP. Only do so if you are deteriorating or you are seriously ill."

Many Scottish GP surgeries have now notified patients that practices are closed and accepting only telephone calls in a bid to stop the virus spreading.

Andrew Buist, head of the BMA's GPs committee in Scotland, said the Scottish government's support for medical staff had stepped up in the past week.

Professional and amateur games have been cancelled for the immediate future

He told BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland programme: "They have agreed to provide the correct personal protective equipment. It has either arrived or it is due to arrive this week. We are working very closely with the Scottish government."

He said patients would have to accept that Covid-19 would take precedence over less serious conditions.

He said: "Whether you are in for hospital work or primary care work, routine stuff is going to have to wait longer.

"Blood tests, smear tests, routine blood pressure checks - all of that is going to have to go on the back burner for a few months."

On Saturday morning, airline Jet 2 cancelled all flights to Spain, the Balearic Islands and Canary Islands "with immediate effect" from nine UK airports.

The airline's passengers at Glasgow Airport were told to go home.

'Christmas-level buying'

Supermarkets were again ravaged as people posted pictures of empty shelves on social media.

They reported a rush to buy all food including toilet rolls, frozen goods, store cupboard essentials, snacks and even cat litter.

Empty shelves and freezers were to be found in supermarkets across Scotland but retail bosses said the supply chains were "robust"

Ewan MacDonald-Russell, of the Scottish Retail Consortium, said retailers were experiencing "Christmas levels" of buying.

"Retail supply chains remain robust - particularly the products we are talking about - loo rolls etc - there are plenty of these things in the supply chains," he said. "What we have is a demand issue - lots of people buying a lot at once."

He said that in the coming weeks, shoppers would need to be more altruistic and sensible and only buy the things they needed for the next few days. He said consumers should be "a bit more community-minded".

He added: "Shop like it is a normal day. The supply chain is robust but the gaps are a result of people getting excited and creating a demand spike. We are confident we can maintain supplies over the next few weeks."

The weekend began in Scotland without any professional sports activity.

A Scotland fan waits outside a deserted Principality Stadium after the 2020 Guinness Six Nations match between Wales and Scotland was cancelled on Friday

The Scottish football season has been suspended indefinitely, along with Scotland's Six Nations match against Wales in Cardiff.

The Edinburgh Marathon Festival, which had been due to take place on 23 and 24 May, was postponed on Saturday.

Neil Kilgour, Edinburgh Marathon's race director said "We are devastated to have to make this decision but we believe that this course of action is in the best interests of our participants, our affiliate charities, the event team who deliver the event and the emergency services who support the event."

He said the organisers hoped to be able to announce a new date on Monday.

The LGT World Men's Curling Championship, due to take place at Glasgow's Emirates Arena from 28 March to 5 April, has been cancelled.

All elite football in England has also been suspended until at least 3 April as a result of the spread of coronavirus.

As events continued to be cancelled, the Scottish government announced a £320m package of financial support for businesses to get them through the Covid-19 crisis.

Finance Secretary Kate Forbes said the cash would be used to offer substantial rates relief for retail, hospitality and leisure sectors and provide grants of at least £3,000 to small businesses in sectors facing the worst economic impact of Covid-19.

• EASY STEPS: How to keep safe

• A SIMPLE GUIDE: What are the symptoms?

• CONTAINMENT: What it means to self-isolate

• HEALTH MYTHS: The fake advice you should ignore

• MAPS AND CHARTS: Visual guide to the outbreak

• VIDEO: The 20-second hand wash