Coronavirus in Scotland: Mandatory for pubs and restaurants to take contact details from next week

The Scottish Government will make it mandatory for pubs and other venues to collect customer details from next Friday, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced.

The requirement will be placed on a “statutory footing”, she said, and will help ensure test and protect can function as effectively as possible.

It comes after Covid-19 cases in an Aberdeen cluster rose to 101, with the outbreak linked to multiple pubs and restaurants in the city.

She also said the Scottish Government will issue new statutory guidance related to indoor hospitality to ensure greater compliance with coronavirus measures, to take effect from next Friday.

Police Scotland will enforce the measures if necessary.

NS: "That’s why today I’m announcing two further measures.

The first is that we now intend to make it mandatory for a range of settings, including hospitality businesses, to collect customer details."

— The SNP (@theSNP) August 7, 2020

Ms Sturgeon added businesses should be collecting contact details and asking people to pre-book tables, and there should be no queues.

People should not be standing at the bar to watch football, she added, and there should be no background music to prevent shouting and any increased risk of transmission.

Ms Sturgeon said that while new mandatory measures being introduced are “really restrictive,” they are there because they are necessary.

She said: “We see in Aberdeen right now including the situation with the football club how quickly this virus spreads”.

Ms Sturgeon said a common factor in the rise in coronavirus outbreaks across the world is a link to hospitality.

We can see from the situation in Aberdeen how quickly this virus spreads – First Minister

She said settings like pubs and restaurants are particularly susceptible to the virus.

While she said the majority of businesses had complied with coronavirus measures imposed on hospitality, she said “it is clear there are some businesses where that has not been the case”.

The First Minister also announced that face coverings will become mandatory in libraries, museums and places of workshop from Saturday in Scotland.

She said the decision to expand the list of places where face coverings must be worn was being taken as “risks are heightened” as the country comes out of lockdown.

Ms Sturgeon also said that based on scientific advice the Scottish Government is not convinced that face visors provide sufficient protection.

As a result, from Saturday if a visor is worn it must be accompanied by another type of face covering.

Face coverings are currently mandatory in shops and on public transport.

Ms Sturgeon said she is satisfied that the vast majority are compiling with these rules.