Scotland cancels Hogmanay event ahead of tighter restrictions

Edinburgh's Hogmanay street party has been cancelled as the Scottish parliament introduced tougher Covid restrictions including the reintroduction of social distancing rules.

The changes, which will be in place for at least three weeks, will mean that from Boxing Day, all outdoor events will be reduced to a capacity of 500 people.

From 27 December, pubs and other hospitality venues selling alcohol must return to table service and those operating indoors must require 1m social distancing between groups of people.

There will be no restrictions on Christmas day.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: "Large-scale Hogmanay celebrations – including that planned here in our capital city – will not proceed."

She added that large gatherings "have the potential to become very rapid super-spreader events, putting large numbers at risk of getting infected very quickly".

"At a time when these services are already under severe pressure and also dealing with high staff absences, limiting large scale events will help them focus on delivering essential services to the public," she continued.

It is reported that 62.9% of all Covid cases in Scotland are from the latest variant.