00:00In order to reduce the risk of more of this strain being imported into Scotland,
00:03we intend to maintain a strict travel ban between Scotland and the rest of the UK.
00:09Unfortunately, and I am genuinely sorry about this,
00:13that ban will remain in place right throughout the festive period.
00:17We simply cannot risk more of this new strain entering the country if we can possibly avoid it.
00:23That means people from Scotland not visiting other parts of the UK and vice versa.
00:27Cross-border travel, for all but the most essential purposes, is not permitted.
00:34Now, we do not yet know how widely this new strain of the virus is circulating in Scotland.
00:40The latest information is that 17 cases have been identified in Scotland through genomic sequencing.
00:48But I think we have to be realistic that that is likely to be an understatement of its true prevalence
00:54right now.
00:54But the most important thing we have learned through this pandemic
00:57is that failing to act quickly, decisively and preventatively in the face of this virus is always a mistake.
01:05If I could have my time all over again, I would act more quickly in February and in early March.
01:12And it's important that we do take the warning we are being given now very seriously
01:17and make sure our actions are appropriate in the face of that.
01:20So, I think we are going to be able to do this in the face of this virus.
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