Fife Council’s co-leaders have welcomed news from the Scottish Government that the region is to be placed in Tier 2 of the new five-level Covid-19 system – although they say Fifers should be aiming for even better.
Find out which Covid-19 restriction tier you are in and what this means with our interactive tool
While the likes of neighbouring Dundee and Edinburgh will be subject to more stringent Tier 3 restrictions from Monday, many across Fife will have breathed a sigh of relief when First Minister Nicola Sturgeon confirmed rumours the Kingdom would be in Tier 2 – largely what people are having to put up with at the moment.
However, recognising how difficult a time it has been for individuals, groups and businesses across the region, Councillors David Alexander and David Ross, the SNP and Labour co-leaders of Fife Council respectively, hope a move to Tier 1 could be considered sooner rather than later if everyone continues to play their part.
Nicola Sturgeon confirms stricter ‘level three’ coronavirus restrictions for Dundee from Monday
In a joint statement, they said: “We had a useful telephone call earlier in the week with the Cabinet Secretary Aileen Campbell MSP regarding Fife’s placement within the tier system and we’re pleased that our views on this were considered by Scottish Government.
“Being placed into tier 2 does give us more benefits, but we mustn’t become complacent.
“It’s important that we all stick with it and follow the public health guidance to help reduce the spread of the virus.
“Ideally, we all need to be working towards getting Fife into Tier 1. This would be a boost for us all, as well as the economy, and would give us even more flexibility.
“We’d like to reassure everyone that no matter what tier we’re in, we’re doing everything we can to help Fifers and businesses through this extremely challenging period and we’ll continue to do this.”
Although Fife is in Tier 2, Ms Sturgeon reminded people that there should be no non-essential travel to or from Tier 3 or higher areas in Scotland, which will be designed to deter people from making unnecessary trips over the Tay Road Bridge and the Forth.
Exemptions for essential travel for work, education, shopping, health etc remain in place for Tier 2 occupants, however.
