London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Feb 03, 2026

Second highest rise in Covid cases since May

Second highest rise in Covid cases since May

The Scottish government says 88 more positive coronavirus cases have been recorded in the past 24 hours.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon tweeted there was "no need for alarm" and the rise was partly due to increased testing.

There were no new deaths reported in the past 24 hours.

Five people were being treated in intensive care on Friday evening, up two on the previous day.

The largest recent rise in cases was just over a week ago on 22 August when 123 new cases were registered. Before that the next largest increase was on 22 May, when 113 new cases were confirmed.

In its daily update, the Scottish government said 0.7% of newly-tested individuals were found to have the virus.

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde saw a rise of 36 positive cases. The health board later said it was contact tracing in connection with Gilmour & Dean Eurostampa, a printing firm based in Whiteinch.


Jason Leitch said he was surprised at how quickly an outbreak in Tayside had been contained


NHS Ayrshire and Arran saw 10 new cases. On Friday the health board said it was contact tracing with a small number of pupils in a South Ayrshire Council secondary school who have had contact with a confirmed case of Covid-19.

Test and Protect staff were also tracing contacts of a separate small number of positive cases.

Cases in NHS Tayside and Grampian where there have been outbreaks rose by 11 and six respectively.

Scotland's national clinical director, Jason Leitch, told the BBC: "It's up from yesterday. But it is down from last Saturday. It has been about this level, 50-100, for about three or four weeks."

He said there was no indication that there was a new major outbreak of the nature of Aberdeen or Coupar Angus.

But he noted the rise in the number of people being treated in intensive care units.

He said: "People should not take this lightly - everybody needs to do their bit to keep these numbers low."

How many cases have there been over the last 60 days?




Mr Leitch added that he felt the outbreak in Coupar Angus, linked to the 2Sisters food plant, had been contained "really well".

He said: "The incident management team are doing a really fantastic job. I am actually a little surprised that we have been able to contain it. It was a lot of people dispersed across Tayside and they have behaved really well.

"They have been contacted by the local authority with lots of home visits and whole-house self-isolation and we have seen pretty much no community transmission from that outbreak."

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon tweeted that there was "no need for alarm" over the rise in cases.

She said the leap was due to an increase in testing, and the proportion of people tested returning positive results remained below 1%.

"The increase in cases just now partly reflects a greater volume of testing. Crucially, our positivity rate remains low (below 1% again today). So no need for alarm. But there is a need to be very careful & cautious - it is all very delicately balanced just now," she said.


Nicola Sturgeon said more testing was taking place


Jason Leitch revealed that he will be writing to parents in the coming week to reinforce the guidance on when a test for the virus is required.

Almost 17,500 children were tested in the week after schools returned, putting pressure on the testing system.

He said that he wanted to reassure parents on what to do in scenarios where cold and flu symptoms were present.

He added that the Scottish government wanted to get the guidance across as simply as possible to make sure everyone stayed safe.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
AI Invented “Hot Springs” — Tourists Arrived and Were Shocked
UK Pharma Watchdog Rules Sanofi Breached Industry Code With RSV Vaccine Claims Against Pfizer
Melania Documentary Opens Modestly in UK with Mixed Global Box Office Performance
Starmer Arrives in Shanghai to Promote British Trade and Investment
Harry Styles, Anthony Joshua and Premier League Stars Among UK’s Top Taxpayers
New Epstein Files Include Images of Former Prince Andrew Kneeling Over Unidentified Woman
Starmer Urges Former Prince Andrew to Testify Before US Congress About Epstein Ties
Starmer Extends Invitation to Japan’s Prime Minister After Strategic Tokyo Talks
Skupski and Harrison Clinch Australian Open Men’s Doubles Title in Melbourne
DOJ Unveils Millions of Epstein Files, Fueling Global Scrutiny of Elite Networks
France Begins Phasing Out Zoom and Microsoft Teams to Advance Digital Sovereignty
China Lifts Sanctions on British MPs and Peers After Starmer Xi Talks in Beijing
Trump Nominates Kevin Warsh as Fed Chair to Reorient U.S. Monetary Policy Toward Pro-Growth Interest Rates
AstraZeneca Announces £11bn China Investment After Scaling Back UK Expansion Plans
Starmer and Xi Forge Warming UK-China Ties in Beijing Amid Strategic Reset
Tech Market Shifts and AI Investment Surge Drive Global Innovation and Layoffs
Markets Jolt as AI Spending, US Policy Shifts, and Global Security Moves Drive New Volatility
U.S. Signals Potential Decertification of Canadian Aircraft as Bilateral Tensions Escalate
Former South Korean First Lady Kim Keon Hee Sentenced to 20 Months for Bribery
Tesla Ends Model S and X Production and Sends $2 Billion to xAI as 2025 Revenue Declines
China Executes 11 Members of the Ming Clan in Cross-Border Scam Case Linked to Myanmar’s Lawkai
Trump Administration Officials Held Talks With Group Advocating Alberta’s Independence
Starmer Signals UK Push for a More ‘Sophisticated’ Relationship With China in Talks With Xi
Shopping Chatbots Move From Advice to Checkout as Walmart Pushes Faster Than Amazon
Starmer Seeks Economic Gains From China Visit While Navigating US Diplomatic Sensitivities
Starmer Says China Visit Will Deliver Economic Benefits as He Prepares to Meet Xi Jinping
UK Prime Minister Starmer Arrives in China to Bolster Trade and Warn Firms of Strategic Opportunities
The AI Hiring Doom Loop — Algorithmic Recruiting Filters Out Top Talent and Rewards Average or Fake Candidates
Amazon to Cut 16,000 Corporate Jobs After Earlier 14,000 Reduction, Citing Streamlining and AI Investment
Federal Reserve Holds Interest Rate at 3.75% as Powell Faces DOJ Criminal Investigation During 2026 Decision
Putin’s Four-Year Ukraine Invasion Cost: Russia’s Mass Casualty Attrition and the Donbas Security-Guarantee Tradeoff
Wall Street Bets on Strong US Growth and Currency Moves as Dollar Slips After Trump Comments
UK Prime Minister Traveled to China Using Temporary Phones and Laptops to Limit Espionage Risks
Google’s $68 Million Voice Assistant Settlement Exposes Incentives That Reward Over-Collection
Kim Kardashian Admits Faking Paparazzi Visit to Britney Spears for Fame in Early 2000s
UPS to Cut 30,000 More Jobs by 2026 Amid Shift to High-Margin Deliveries
France Plans to Replace Teams and Zoom Across Government With Homegrown Visio by 2027
Trump Removes Minneapolis Deportation Operation Commander After Fatal Shooting of Protester
Iran’s Elite Wealth Abroad and Sanctions Leakage: How Offshore Luxury Sustains Regime Resilience
U.S. Central Command Announces Regional Air Exercise as Iran Unveils Drone Carrier Footage
Four Arrested in Andhra Pradesh Over Alleged HIV-Contaminated Injection Attack on Doctor
Hot Drinks, Hidden Particles: How Disposable Cups Quietly Increase Microplastic Exposure
UK Banks Pledge £11 Billion Lending Package to Help Firms Expand Overseas
Suella Braverman Defects to Reform UK, Accusing Conservatives of Betrayal on Core Policies
Melania Trump Documentary Sees Limited Box Office Traction in UK Cinemas
Meta and EssilorLuxottica Ray-Ban Smart Glasses and the Non-Consensual Public Recording Economy
WhatsApp Develops New Meta AI Features to Enhance User Control
Germany Considers Gold Reserves Amidst Rising Tensions with the U.S.
Michael Schumacher Shows Significant Improvement in Health Status
Greenland’s NATO Stress Test: Coercion, Credibility, and the New Arctic Bargaining Game
×