Scotland's Covid death toll hits highest level since June
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Seven more deaths of people who tested positive for coronavirus have been recorded in Scotland, the highest daily total since 17 June.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the deaths were a "very sharp reminder" that Covid is "extremely dangerous".
A further 640 new positive test results were also reported, with 137 people being treated in hospital.
The total number of people to have died in Scotland within 28 days of testing positive now stands at 2,519.
But the National Records of Scotland says the virus has been mentioned as a contributing factor or suspected cause of death on 4,257 death certificates.
Fresh restrictions have been imposed across the UK in recent weeks in response to a sharp rise in coronavirus cases.
The Scottish government has said it is considering the possibility of imposing a so-called circuit breaker lockdown in a bid to curb the spread of the virus.
The move could see the country put back into strict lockdown for a two or three week period - although no decision has yet been taken on when, or if, it should be introduced.
The seven deaths Ms Sturgeon announced at her daily briefing was the highest total for more than three months, and the first minister said this was "a very sharp reminder that Covid is an extremely dangerous virus as well as a highly infectious one".
The seven deaths were the most announced by Ms Sturgeon at her daily briefing since 17 June
She said that more deaths were "a consequence of the virus getting out of control", but said they were "not inevitable" if people stuck to the restrictions.
Ms Sturgeon said: "As night follows day, if we allow infections to continue to rise they will go from younger people to older people, people in older more vulnerable groups will get sick, be admitted to intensive care and die.
"That is the path this virus will take if we don't get in its way and interrupt it.
"We can interrupt it - we interrupted it in the summer and we can do it again, but it means all of us sticking to the rules."
Ms Sturgeon was speaking after the national clinical director, Prof Jason Leitch, told Holyrood's Covid-19 committee that a circuit-breaker lockdown could be part of the answer to tackling the resurgence in cases across Scotland.
But he said there was a "difficult balance" to be struck when considering whether such a move should be recommended.
'Implications for schools'
Prof Leitch said: "Some modellers suggest you should do it repeatedly - so you would do two weeks, open for a period, then two weeks again.
"But that has implications for economy, implications for society, implications for schools.
"So it is a very difficult balance about whether we think this new iconic measure would be something we would recommend for Scotland."
Deputy First Minister John Swinney told the committee that "detailed work" on the possibility was being carried out, but no decision has been made on whether to introduce the measure.
Mr Swinney said a circuit breaker lockdown may or may not see schools ordered to shut, but added: "Frankly the last thing I want to have to do is to close schools."
Meanwhile, the Scottish government has announced the rollout of a new £500 grant for people on low incomes who are asked to self-isolate.
The Self-Isolation Support Grant is designed to help those who would lose income if they are advised to stay at home, and will be open for applications from 12 October.
It is targeted at people who are in receipt of Universal Credit or are in financial hardship, and will be administered by local councils.
Social Security Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said that while self-isolation "can be tough", it was "essential to protect people and reduce the spread of coronavirus".
She added: "We want to do everything we can to support people throughout this challenging time and these payments will help ensure people do not have to make a choice between self-isolating and supporting themselves financially."
