Rangers’ Europa League game at home to Bayer Leverkusen should form part of an inquiry into the handling of the coronavirus outbreak, politicians said yesterday.
The tie against the German side on March 12 was the last football match to be played in Scotland and saw hundreds of fans travel to Glasgow from abroad.
Scotland’s first death linked to coronavirus was recorded the following day in the Lothian and Borders health board area.
UK lockdown did not come into place until March 23.
Liverpool City Council are to hold an inquiry into possible links between the influx of fans for a Liverpool v Atletico Madrid Champions League game and a subsequent spike in coronavirus cases in the city. Rangers’ game against Leverkusen took place the following day.
Alex Cole-Hamilton, Scottish Lib Dems health spokesman, said: “I don’t think we should be taking officials from positions at the moment to look into this type of issue, but it is something which should be considered by a public inquiry when this is all over.”
Liverpool mayor Joe Anderson has asked the city’s public health director to oversee an investigation into the Anfield match which saw 3,000 Atletico fans travel to Merseyside.
Steve Rotheram, the metro mayor of Liverpool City Region, suggested the government was pursuing a “flawed” policy of herd immunity at the time.
So far, the deaths of 246 people in Liverpool hospitals have been linked to the virus. Greater Glasgow and Clyde has the country’s highest number of Covid-19-related deaths at 513 as of April 19.
UEFA still hope to conclude this season’s Euro competitions, with August 6 pencilled in for Rangers’ return trip to Germany. The Ibrox side trail 3-1 in the tie.
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