Covid cases in Scotland surpass 4,000 for first time since mass testing

Daily Covid cases reported in Scotland have surpassed 4,000 for the first time since mass testing began.

According to Scottish government figures, 10.5% of those who were tested on Wednesday returned positive results.

It comes after Public Health Scotland linked hundreds of cases to people travelling to London for Scotland's Euros game with England on 18 June.

Third wave cases in Scotland began to surpass January's peak towards the end of June.

The Scottish government has now confirmed that 4,234 new cases of Covid were reported within the past 24 hours, as well as six deaths.

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First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has previously said the "steep rise" in cases showed that people should be "really careful".

But she said there was "positive news" from the vaccine programme, which she said was preventing a similar rise in the number of people in hospital or losing their lives.

On Wednesday she tweeted: "Vaccines are now doing much of the work we needed heavy restrictions to do in the last wave. And thankfully, we continue to see a much lower burden of serious illness.

"We continue to monitor cases - and, crucially, hospital/ICU numbers - carefully. However, by following all the advice, we all play a part in keeping country safe."

Figures show that more than 10% of tests taken on Wednesday were positive

Patients being treated for Covid in hospital have steadily grown since mid-May, jumping from 235 on Wednesday to 275 on Thursday - however ICU patients have fallen to 16.

Earlier in June, tens of thousands of football fans are believed to have travelled to London despite warnings not to do so unless they had a ticket or a safe place to watch the match - with many gathering in large groups.

Public Health Scotland said it had tagged positive Covid cases if they attended either a Euro 2020 organised event, such as a match at Hampden or Wembley Stadium or the Fanzone at Glasgow Green.

People who tested positive after attending an informal gathering, such as a pub or a house party to watch a match, were also tagged.

The report said 1,294 of the 1,991 total cases had reported travelling to London, including 397 who were actually at the match.

National clinical director Prof Jason Leitch told BBC Scotland that the huge increase in Covid-19 cases was straining Scotland's contact tracing system but said it was "not collapsing".

Figures from Public Health Scotland suggest it is now taking longer to contact infectious people and to track down their close contacts.

Opposition parties have called for more resources to be given to the Test and Protect system, warning that it was "reaching breaking point" and "buckling under the pressure".

Meanwhile, 3,816,251 people have received the first dose of the vaccine and 2,722,725 have received their second dose.

It has emerged the NHS has been given the green light to start planning a booster programme in the UK ahead of this winter which could see 30 million people receive a third dose.

A bigger flu season than normal is expected, meaning extra protection against the virus is likely to be needed.

All adults aged 50 and over, and anyone younger who qualifies for a flu jab should receive a Covid booster.

Talks are ongoing over how this programme will be rolled out in Scotland.

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