Covid in Scotland: Call for clarity over shop regulations
- Published
The SRC wants clarity over the need for customers to wear masks in shops
Retailers have called on the Scottish government to provide greater clarity on the Covid regulations affecting shops when it sets out its new framework on Tuesday.
Nicola Sturgeon will unveil plans for living with Covid but is not expected to scrap all remaining restrictions.
The Scottish Retail Consortium wants a timeline for the lifting of the rules for shops.
It also wants clarity over the need for customers to wear masks in stores.
In recent weeks, Nicola Sturgeon has relaxed guidance on working from home, bubbles and groupings within schools and 2m physical distancing in some indoor settings.
But she is not expected to follow Prime Minister Boris Johnson who is lifting all restrictions in England from Thursday.
Last month, the Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC) published estimates that Scotland's shops missed out on £5.8bn of sales during the past two years due to the pandemic.
Separate figures earlier this month from SRC and partners KPMG and SensomaticIQ suggested retail sales and shopper footfall in Scotland had yet to get back to pre-pandemic levels.
The SRC said one in six shops was vacant.
It is calling for:
A timeline for lifting the regulations and statutory guidance affecting shops on the use of plastic screens and barriers, physical distancing in queues and floor markings
Clarity on the future statutory requirement for customers to wear face coverings in stores
A concerted effort and an upbeat message to encourage and entice people back into city centres
The group pointed out that the regulations affecting retailers on physical distancing and up to 50 other mitigations and measures became legally enforceable on 17 December, adding that the work-from-home order was lifted last month.
The wearing of face coverings in stores has been compulsory since 10 July 2020, but has ended in Northern Ireland and England and is ending in Wales next month.
Speaking ahead of the first minister's statement to parliament, David Lonsdale, SRC director, said: "Strong progress has been made in battling the pandemic. Many shops are still trying to find their feet after 23 months of complying with Covid restrictions with an inevitable impact on shopper footfall and sales, and would welcome early visibility over plans to remove these final curbs.
"Over and above this we need to see a concerted plan with a more upbeat message to encourage and entice shoppers back to our city centres.
"The rescinding of restrictions provides a timely opportunity to breathe life back into city centre retailing which has been hit especially hard by the exodus of office workers and tourists during the pandemic."
Nicola Sturgeon said it was not the right time to bring current testing arrangements to "a sudden end"
A Scottish government spokesman said: "We know our economic recovery remains fragile, and that many retailers have had an incredibly challenging time over the last two years. The Scottish government is firmly focused on supporting our economy to recover and for people to safely enjoy our high streets, town and city centres.
"Since the start of the pandemic, businesses including retailers have benefited from more than £4.4bn of business support. This includes Covid-19 non-domestic rates reliefs which have saved businesses around £1.6bn in reduced rates bills since 1 April 2020.
"The first minister will set out the Scottish government's approach for managing Covid more sustainably and less restrictively to parliament on 22 February with an updated strategic framework."
On Sunday, the SNP's Westminster leader Ian Blackford said Ms Sturgeon's announcement on Tuesday would be a roadmap "to deal with Covid, to get on with our lives and get back to normal as much as we can".
"But with all that," he added "it's key that we continue to give the necessary protections to people."
Not the right time
Boris Johnson has said that the legal requirement to self-isolate will be dropped in England as part of his "living with Covid" plan.
He also said that from 1 April free mass testing for symptomatic and asymptomatic people would end after he revealed that £2bn was spent on the system in January alone.
Ms Sturgeon said it was not the right time to end self-isolation for people with Covid - or bring current testing arrangements to "a sudden end".
Her comments come as she unveiled a new £80m fund to help businesses and communities in Scotland recover from the pandemic.
The funding will be provided to local authorities, to be distributed as they see fit.
A further £3m was also allocated to help the seven cities in Scotland drive footfall to city centre businesses.
