UKC

NEWS: Lockdown Easing: Stay Local, Think Twice, Stay Safe

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 UKC/UKH News 29 Mar 2021

As lockdown begins to ease in each of the devolved nations at different times and in different ways, many of us will be heading out for the first time, staying local and climbing and walking with a limited number of people and partners. Here's a brief overview of how the latest and upcoming changes affect outdoor recreation, plus a video from the BMC emphasising the importance of exercising extra caution as many take their first steps on rock after a long layoff.



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Removed User 30 Mar 2021

so note the keywords in the notepad to make it easy to remember.

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 daftdazza 30 Mar 2021
In reply to UKC/UKH News:

Unless Scottish government update there website in next few days it's looking like once the stay at home law and associated travel ban ends on Friday, then stay local message will be guidance only. Hard to work out for sure if this is the case,  Can wait and see if any update comes online in next few days, being guidelines would put Scotland more inline with Wales and England, importantly allowing people to visit friends and family living 5 miles outside there council area legally for potential first time in over 6 months. 

 Martin W 30 Mar 2021
In reply to daftdazza:

You may be being a little optimistic: https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-timetable-for-easing...

  • 2 April

lifting the ‘Stay at Home’ requirement and replacing it with a ‘Stay Local’ message (retaining the current, local authority-based travel restrictions for at least a three-week period)

AIUI the plan is to return to the protection levels system we had last autumn BUT with more stringent criteria for e.g. 7 day case rates per 100,000 population to determine which protection level a given local authority area falls in to.  Last time I looked they were saying that for protection level 2 an area would have to have a 7 day case rate below 50 cases per 100,000 population.  They also said that they were expecting most LAs to be at protection level 3 at the outset, which would mean that the five mile limit would still apply.

Note that the travel restrictions based on protection levels were specified in Coronoavirus regulations, so actual law not just advice: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ssi/2020/389/regulation/5/made

I'm afraid it doesn't look like anyone in a level 3 or above area is going to be zipping off around the country any time soon - at least, not legally.

I'm p1ssed because Edinburgh was sitting at ~45 cases until very recently, but it's now jumped up to ~55 so bye bye to any chance of e.g. visiting any of the East Lothian beaches in the next few weeks.  And, though I am doing my best to stick to the rules, I am getting royally bored with visiting the same old outdoor exercise locations week after week.  There's only so many places you can go within Edinburgh or a five mile radius thereof...

 daftdazza 30 Mar 2021
In reply to Martin W:

I am definitely being optimistic, but it's the wording that is so poor, lifting stay at home requirement and replacing it with a stay local message.  Regardless all seems a little uncessary now given what everyone has put up with over the last year and current positive situation the country is in.  

 Martin W 30 Mar 2021
In reply to daftdazza:

> Regardless all seems a little uncessary now given ... current positive situation the country is in.  

What, a rolling seven day average of between 500 and 600 new cases a day, which is roughly where we were at the end of September when things really started to take off again?  With vaccination rates down to about half what they were at the mid-February peak and only just over half the adult population so far vaccinated?  And with the government the other side of the border already starting to talk about a possible "third wave"?

Yes, hospitalisation rates and deaths are declining - though ICU admissions are ticking up a bit - but TBH I'm not convinced that this is yet the time to start taking the collective eye off the ball.  As I mentioned in my previous post, Edinburgh and a number of other cities are seeing not insignificant rises in the 7 day case rate.  This thing spreads from person to person: those hotspots in West Lothian (and one that has appeared in Leith this last week) didn't arise spontaneously out of thin air.  Stop people moving about so much, you help stop the disease spreading.

(Data taken from the Public Health Scotland Daily Dashboard: https://public.tableau.com/profile/phs.covid.19#!/vizhome/COVID-19DailyDash...)

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 Wil Treasure 30 Mar 2021
In reply to Martin W:

> I'm afraid it doesn't look like anyone in a level 3 or above area is going to be zipping off around the country any time soon - at least, not legally.

Depending on your given value of "soon". From 26th April it's the intention that the travel restriction will be lifted entirely, regardless of tier. I wait with bated breath!

I moved to Edinburgh at the end of September, the pubs shut a couple of weeks later, then the climbing walls, then everything! 6 months has felt like a long time.

 Robert Durran 30 Mar 2021
In reply to daftdazza:

As I understand it "stay local" means that from 2nd we can travel freely within the law and guidance in our own council areas in Scotland. I hope I am right. Quite excited at the prospect.

 Martin W 30 Mar 2021
In reply to Robert Durran:

> As I understand it "stay local" means that from 2nd we can travel freely within the law and guidance in our own council areas in Scotland. I hope I am right. Quite excited at the prospect.

Indeed.  "Stay at home" means exactly that: you are not supposed to leave your home without a reasonable excuse.  "Stay local" means you will not be supposed to leave your local authority area without a reasonable excuse.

It's unclear to me why people seem to find this difficult to understand - unless they deliberately choose to do so.  But then a lot of people seem to have found "stay at home" difficult to grasp on its own this time around.  The Edinburgh City Bypass has been nowhere near as quiet during this current lockdown as it was during lockdown #1, for example.  (I know this because a good number of my local walking & cycling routes take me over it, in case anyone is wondering.)

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 Robert Durran 30 Mar 2021
In reply to Martin W:

> Indeed.  "Stay at home" means exactly that: you are not supposed to leave your home without a reasonable excuse.  "Stay local" means you will not be supposed to leave your local authority area without a reasonable excuse.

So is it still going to be illegal to leave your council area from 2nd?

 Michael Gordon 30 Mar 2021
In reply to Robert Durran:

> So is it still going to be illegal to leave your council area from 2nd?

Yes, apart from work or caring responsibilities - this was answered upthread. 

Basically nothing much changes since we were always allowed to travel within council areas anyway via the exceptions to the 'stay home' rule (work and exercise). Effectively for many it has been 'stay local' right through.

 Toccata 30 Mar 2021
In reply to Wil Treasure:

It seems the attitude down here (West Midlands) is that everything is open next weekend. Two colleagues have accommodation booked in Scotland and in Wales (respectively) with no concerns from the agents taking bookings (and complete lack of interest in regional variations, but that's surgeons for you). I guess Boris overrules devolved authority in practical if not legal terms.

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 Martin W 30 Mar 2021
In reply to Wil Treasure:

> From 26th April it's the intention that the travel restriction will be lifted entirely, regardless of tier.

What the ScoGov web site I linked to above currently says is: "...travel within all of mainland Scotland permitted (subject to other restrictions that remain in place)"  It does not say "regardless of tier" (we don't have "tiers" in Scotland anyway, we have "protection levels").  IMO "subject to other restrictions that remain in place" could very easily turn out to mean "subject to travel restrictions pertaining to individual protection levels".  Although, in this case, I'd agree with daftdazza that it would be helpful if the wording were somewhat clearer.

Don't get me wrong: I'd be cautiously pleased if we get to situation in three weeks' time where travel restrictions can be lifted in a sensible way.  But I'm not making plans on such an assumption until the details are formally confirmed.

Post edited at 22:38
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 Dave Hewitt 30 Mar 2021
In reply to Michael Gordon:

> Basically nothing much changes since we were always allowed to travel within council areas anyway via the exceptions to the 'stay home' rule (work and exercise). Effectively for many it has been 'stay local' right through.

A lot depends on how the police choose to act. I have several friends around here (Stirling) who have been having Munro days in the local council area without any problem, but I also know of people being stopped just a few miles out of town despite being local and intending a walk not very far into the council area. Whether the risk of that retreats with the change from Stay At Home to Stay Local on Friday remains to be seen. I'm wary, as I have been for ages now - maybe I've been a bit over-anxious and stupid about it, but I haven't been more than a couple of miles west of Stirling/Dunblane since late November.

 Robert Durran 30 Mar 2021
In reply to Michael Gordon:

> Basically nothing much changes since we were always allowed to travel within council areas anyway via the exceptions to the 'stay home' rule (work and exercise). Effectively for many it has been 'stay local' right through.

As far as exercise is concerned, it's been "stay local" for anyone in a small council area or for anyone sticking to the guidance in a large council area. As one of the latter, it will make a big difference to me, opening up a large area of the Highlands (Perth and Kinross)

 Robert Durran 30 Mar 2021
In reply to Toccata:

> It seems the attitude down here (West Midlands) is that everything is open next weekend. Two colleagues have accommodation booked in Scotland and in Wales (respectively) with no concerns from the agents taking bookings (and complete lack of interest in regional variations, but that's surgeons for you). I guess Boris overrules devolved authority in practical if not legal terms.

Sounds like the booking agents have got it wrong. Surely visitors from England can't travel anywhere in Scotland when travel is still restricted within Scotland.

 Michael Gordon 31 Mar 2021
In reply to Robert Durran:

> Sounds like the booking agents have got it wrong. Surely visitors from England can't travel anywhere in Scotland when travel is still restricted within Scotland.

...and travel to and from Scotland. I agree

 Michael Gordon 31 Mar 2021
In reply to Dave Hewitt:

With the rules regarding leaving your council area remaining the same, logically I wouldn't expect a change in police stop checking. They may likely feel that there's more chance of people breaking the rules within the next few weeks.

 Si dH 31 Mar 2021
In reply to Robert Durran:

> Sounds like the booking agents have got it wrong. Surely visitors from England can't travel anywhere in Scotland when travel is still restricted within Scotland.

I decided to gamble on booking a cottage in summer a couple of weeks ago. All the places (mostly major booking websites) that I saw were taking bookings from 26th April, because that's when the Scottish government has indicated is the earliest that travel restrictions would be released, both within Scotland and across the border (my booking is much later than that!) as well as the earliest that self contained accommodation could open.

Edit, deleted part of my post that I double checked and realised was wrong.

Post edited at 07:54
 stp 31 Mar 2021
In reply to Martin W:

> It's unclear to me why people seem to find this difficult to understand

I think the rules and their implementation have been ambiguous at best. Sometimes they seem to be the law and other times just guidance. The idea of guidance is immediately ambiguous: can I or can't I then?

There are lots of exemptions: you can travel for exercise for instance. People wonder is climbing exercise or not? Finally everything is enforced in really weird ways. Here in the Peak two women got nicked for meeting up outside on a bench because they were from different households. Meanwhile people having been climbing everyday in crowded locations, well outside their local area, with other people and the police don't lift a finger to try to prevent it.

So I'm not surprised there is confusion and in the midst of this confusion people tend to figure out and make up their own rules because that's all they can do.

 Martin W 31 Mar 2021
In reply to stp:

> I think the rules and their implementation have been ambiguous at best. Sometimes they seem to be the law and other times just guidance.

It is relatively straightforward to find out what's actual law and what must (by default) be just "guidance" by looking up the most recent regulations on legislation.gov.uk, as I linked above.  Depends, really, on whether you're inclined to be a good citizen, like Dave Hewitt, erring on the side of caution during a global pandemic that has already killed 2.75M people, or you want to find out what you can probably 'get away with' if challenged.  The third option - not I think openly espoused by any on here, but clearly popular amongst some elements of the population as a whole - is to do WTF you like on the basis that you're fairly unlikely to get caught.

One thing which I think has been far too weakly defined is the concept of the "support bubble" and what it allows people to do.  I've read reports on here and elsewhere of people carrying out extended tours around the UK visiting family members in different locations and justifying this by arguing that each group of family members they visit are their "support bubble" for that particular day.  It seems some people think that the magic word "bubble" is a passport to do WTF you like.

Post edited at 08:34
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 Martin W 31 Mar 2021
In reply to Dave Hewitt:

> I have several friends around here (Stirling) who have been having Munro days in the local council area without any problem, but I also know of people being stopped just a few miles out of town despite being local and intending a walk not very far into the council area.

Was that "stopped and sent home" or just "stopped, asked what their intentions were, and allowed to proceed"?  As has been fairly clearly demonstrated by the outcome of a number of cases discussed on UKC and elsewhere, the police can't take enforcement action against people who haven't actually broken the law, though they can respectfully suggest that it might be a better idea to amend plans that are clearly stretching the guidelines to the limit.

 stp 31 Mar 2021
In reply to Martin W:

I think there is also a fourth category too. That is people who are taking Covid seriously but not necessarily adhering strictly to the rules. For example people who have already had Covid or the young have significantly lower risks than the elderly. Also the two women I mentioned above: they drove out in separate vehicles and sat on opposite ends of a bench in the middle of nowhere. But I totally accept your 3rd, WTF, category of people too.

A friend of mine saw someone stopped for not wearing a mask by the ticket guy going into a railway station. His response? He punched the ticket guy and just carried on.

My friend, who's travelled quite a bit during the pandemic, says he always sees some people on the trains who just refuse to wear a facemask.

I think the lack of enforcement must play a big part in all this. I've been out climbing a few times and at first it seemed best to choose the quiet crags. But I've seen people climbing right by a busy road and clearly no one has bothered to intervene. If we're going to have rules they should be enforced. Otherwise some people will ignore them, then other people see there is no consequence so they naturally assume that doing x must be OK.

 Dave Hewitt 31 Mar 2021
In reply to Martin W:

> Was that "stopped and sent home" or just "stopped, asked what their intentions were, and allowed to proceed"? 

The former. I don't know the people concerned (a couple with a child), but they're known to one of my main hill sidekicks which is how I heard about it. I know a few details (including one rather startling one that I'd probably better not divulge here), and the gist is that it happened in mid-Feb, they were heading to Callander for a low-level walk and were turned round somewhere between Stirling and Callander. I wonder - and this is just speculation - if it had been someone intending an actual hill whether they might have been allowed to proceed - ie they might have been sent back on the basis that there were suitable low-level walks closer to Stirling. That's just a guess, though - but they were certainly sent back not very far from home, given that even from where I live on the east side of Stirling it's only 15 miles to Callander (and all solidly within the Stirling council area). What is also well known - or at least widely assumed - in these parts is that Stirling polis are pretty zealous in this regard; perhaps not at the level of the Derbyshire police, but certainly compared with other Scottish areas.

Re the earlier suggestion that I'm "a good citizen", while I suppose there's some truth in that it's not how I'd look to portray myself. In terms of this particular issue - worrying about whether I can drive about a third of the way across my council area to climb a Munro that I've been on more than 50 times before - it's more that I don't want to risk getting stopped and suffer the ignominy (and waste of money) of being sent home. As mentioned earlier, I have various local friends who have had "legal" Munro days of late, and I don't regard any of them as being bad citizens - rather, they've been bolder than me and perhaps lucky in having avoided any blue-light hassle. They've been to places such as Crianlairich and the Balquhidder road-end; I'm not looking to go anywhere near that distance, merely to Callander for Stuc a' Chroin from the quiet side, but I haven't felt confident enough about trying as yet - although I probably will sometime fairly soon after the 2 April changes, as part of me feels like I'm being a bit of a mug here.

I've been very lucky in terms of what I have been able to manage, however - certainly compared with friends in more urban areas - and I can't at all complain about a lack of hill activity. The irony is that I've been going the other way, to the Ochils, and taking full advantage of the "five miles beyond" rule. In "good citizen" terms I've been strict about that - the street where I routinely park at the west end of Tillicoultry is exactly five miles along the A91 from the council boundary (and 8.5 miles total from my house). I've not driven an inch beyond that since the current restrictions came in, hence no Dollar, no Glen Devon, even though I'm hankering after these places every bit as much as I am after Callander. (And hence increasingly dodgy electrics in the car, which is badly needing a proper run.) I've managed [checks notes] 29 days above 2000ft already this year, which is masses more than most folk, but all 29 have been on the Ochils and almost all have been from a start in Clackmannanshire rather than Stirling. I'd dearly love to trundle a few miles west for a "proper" Stirling council hillwalk, but I'll wait a wee bit longer and see what these latest changes bring...

Post edited at 10:34
 Michael Gordon 31 Mar 2021
In reply to Martin W:

> global pandemic > 

Please, can we refer to it either as a 'pandemic' or 'global epidemic'. 'Global pandemic' is pointless tautology. Thankyou.

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In reply to Michael Gordon:

Hmm I wouldn't say so. Pandemic can mean a spread over a wide area or across the world, but global has been used a lot to describe the COVID-19 pandemic and emphasise its worldwide spread.

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 Martin W 01 Apr 2021
In reply to Michael Gordon:

>'Global pandemic' is pointless tautology.

Not according to the EOD:

Of a disease: epidemic over a very large area; affecting a large proportion of a population.

"Global" seems to be a useful additional qualification to "very large area" in the present instance.

 Robert Durran 02 Apr 2021
In reply to UKC/UKH News:

So with the easing of restrictions in Scotland I jumped into my car last night (ok, so I jumped the gun by about 3 hours) and by midnight was dossing in the back of my car beside a remote stretch of single-track road in the further reaches of my council area of Perth and Kinross. Soon after that what looked like a local 4wd vehicle drew up alongside and a torch was pointed at me which I ignored and they drove on. About 3am I was awoken by a police car with a policeman and woman in it (it was such an obscure spot that I'm inclined to think that my earlier visitor had alerted them). They told me I was breaking covid regulations. They did not seem too concerned about my jumping the gun or my dossing away from home but rather that I had not stayed "local" (they explained that all that had changed was the rule to "stay at home" to "stay local" and that being a couple of hours from home was not "local"). I told them that, as I and others I knew had understood it, travel was now allowed freely within one's local council area, but they said that was only for essential purposes. Eventually they said they would give me the benefit of the doubt (so they were admitting their own doubt about the rules otherwise it would have rather been a case of letting me off?) and left me to go back to sleep. They didn't even tell me I should head home in the morning.

Anyway, a fair number of people around and parked in the usual hill-going spots today. I fully intend to stay north and make use of the continued good weather tomorrow. 

2
 Dave Hewitt 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Robert Durran:

> They did not seem too concerned about my jumping the gun or my dossing away from home but rather that I had not stayed "local" (they explained that all that had changed was the rule to "stay at home" to "stay local" and that being a couple of hours from home was not "local").

This is the kind of stuff I've been worrying about for weeks.

> I fully intend to stay north and make use of the continued good weather tomorrow. 

That feels risky to me from a police point of view. If the same or other officers see your car wherever you are in that quite-far-away area over the next day or so they'll likely check back, see that you've been logged once already, and you might then find yourself having problems.

It sounds like you're legally OK from the council area point of view at least (less sure about the overnight dossing), but while I'm planning to finally try and get up a big hill in my own council area tomorrow, after a four-month hiatus, I'll be going to the nearest sensible quiet starting point for such an outing (and then coming home for my tea).

Incidentally, I'm not long back in from a couple of hours on Earl's Hill to the west of Stirling - the thing with masts on, a very good viewpoint. Unsurprisingly quiet there, but I drove back round the side of North Third and past the Lewis Hill laybys and it was pretty busy.

 Michael Gordon 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Robert Durran:

Is camping / overnight stays now allowed? I hadn't heard that, and in the absence of that info I assumed they weren't.

 ScraggyGoat 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Robert Durran:

Scot Gov regs updated today:

‘Travelling around Scotland

Those who live in a Level 4 area:

must, by law, remain within that area unless they have a reasonable excuse (see exceptions)

should stay local and keep journeys within the area to a minimum.’
 

So you were not breaking the law the ‘must’ clause, but we’re breaking the guidance ‘should’ clause. Hence the police couldn’t charge you or move you on, and clearly they knew it!  Nothing like a bit of collusion between locals and the police.

Once again the Scot Gov have worded the regs so everyone can think they are ‘right’, in the hope the population blames each other rather than blaming the Gov./SNP.

 Robert Durran 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Dave Hewitt:

> That feels risky to me from a police point of view. If the same or other officers see your car wherever you are in that quite-far-away area over the next day or so they'll likely check back, see that you've been logged once already, and you might then find yourself having problems.

I'll take the risk. I can't believe they are routinely patrolling obscure single track roads at night. I'll be somewhere different.

 Robert Durran 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Michael Gordon:

> Is camping / overnight stays now allowed? I hadn't heard that, and in the absence of that info I assumed they weren't.

I really don't know, I don't want to know and, quite frankly, I'm past caring right now.

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 ScraggyGoat 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Michael Gordon:

Camping in your own LA area now within the guidance from Mountaineering Scotland (see website)....and let’s face it they have been so timid representing us, being little more than a government mouth-piece, that they would hardly have said that if there was any ambiguity.

Post edited at 14:46
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 Robert Durran 02 Apr 2021
In reply to ScraggyGoat:

> Scot Gov regs updated today:

> ‘Travelling around Scotland

> Those who live in a Level 4 area:

> must, by law, remain within that area unless they have a reasonable excuse (see exceptions)

> should stay local and keep journeys within the area to a minimum.’

> So you were not breaking the law the ‘must’ clause, but we’re breaking the guidance ‘should’ clause. Hence the police couldn’t charge you or move you on, and clearly they knew it!  Nothing like a bit of collusion between locals and the police.

So it seems pretty well everybody took the previous announcements about today's changes to expect something different from what has actually happened? So the only difference is that we can now travel "locally" for reasons other than exercise?

After our discussion, the policewoman turned to the policeman and said "your decision" and he replied "we'll give you the benefit of the doubt", so implying that other options we're open to them. But maybe a bluff....

 Dave Hewitt 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Robert Durran:

> I'll take the risk. I can't believe they are routinely patrolling obscure single track roads at night. I'll be somewhere different.

Good luck! Your reg will be on their in-car database, though.

 Robert Durran 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Dave Hewitt:

> Good luck! Your reg will be on their in-car database, though.

And I'll be within the law. The worst they can do is send me home.

 ScraggyGoat 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Robert Durran:

Yes, local travel for non-essential.

The cops probably were bluffing, though they may have had other options that you weren’t aware of, some P&K rural roads were designated as clearways last year to prevent parking obstructions, or they could have gone for non COVID ways to make your life difficult; vehicle inspection for instance.

I will be travelling across LAs in a few days under the essential purposes clauses, expect to get pulled over if I happen to pass a rural plod, they will be doing a high profile stay within the rules deterrent exercise. I don’t expect any problem as the purpose is within bonafide travel exemptions, but will be interesting nevertheless.

Post edited at 15:00
 Dave Hewitt 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Robert Durran:

> And I'll be within the law. The worst they can do is send me home.

Agreed, but the sending-home might not be massive fun - giving your car the once-over etc [as I see ScraggyGoat above has also just suggested]. In terms of the reported exchange between the two polis, I'm not sure, but I think if it was me in that situation (in which case it would be somewhere out Tyndrum way I guess, 50-odd miles from here but still in my council area) then I'd see it as a gentle hint / lucky escape and would get markedly closer to home for whatever it was that I did the next day.

Post edited at 15:00
 Robert Durran 02 Apr 2021
In reply to ScraggyGoat:

> Yes, local travel for non-essential.

> The cops probably were bluffing, though they may have had other options that you weren’t aware of, some P&K rural roads were designated as clearways last year to prevent parking obstructions.

Lots of passing places have new specific no parking notices and forest car parks have new, very clear notices about not camping or vans over night. Not seen any new clear way signs.

 ScraggyGoat 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Dave Hewitt:

I’m currently undecided what will happen at the end of April, will it be a pre-election travel free for all, or will we find ‘the subject to restrictions’ in conjunction with the protection levels coming in to force.  Probably will depend on the amount of public pressure.....either way.

For me it will be ironic as through most of Feb and March my LA has had a lower rate than Highland, but is now ticking up.  So by the rate yard stick measure when it was ‘safe’ to travel (equivalent Level 2) to the hills it wasn’t  allowed, and if a free for all at end April it will be allowed when it is likely to be over the threshold!

 Robert Durran 02 Apr 2021
In reply to ScraggyGoat:

This has got me thinking that we are unlikely to go from this "stay local" rule straight to freedom to travel throughout Scotland in 3 weeks time. Seems more likely it will be stuck in own council areas for levels 3 and 4, so effectively still no change for people in cities and small council areas.

 Michael Gordon 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Robert Durran:

>So the only difference is that we can now travel "locally" for reasons other than exercise?> 

That was my take on it.

 Michael Gordon 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Robert Durran:

I haven't heard anything yet about returning to the levels system for local areas other than the islands.

 Robert Durran 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Michael Gordon:

> I haven't heard anything yet about returning to the levels system for local areas other than the islands.

I thought that we were returning to levels on 26th.

 ScraggyGoat 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Robert Durran:

Yes returning to Levels, all bar islands now Level 4, moving to a modified Level 3 at end April. The details of the ‘modified’ bit yet to be announced....will it be modified travel to fit with the hoped for pan Scotland travel easing??

I think it will depend on the polls and how well the SNP are doing, and what their focus groups are telling them will gain votes if they are struggling.

NS was basking in a glow of ‘more cautious’ support last year, and will be keen to regenerate if possible.  Plus being a minority government they won’t want to loose a seat, so if many cities are still dominantly voting SNP regardless but the rural constituency are on an edge, with restrictions tipping the balance as to how rural dwellers are likely to vote we will be buggered.

Alternatively if the cities are crying freedom and SNP seats within them at risk, they will swing the other way.  Though I see that as less likely.

Post edited at 15:40
1
 Michael Gordon 02 Apr 2021
In reply to ScraggyGoat:

The current plan as I understood it was to lift all travel restrictions on the 26th, subject to case numbers etc. 

 ScraggyGoat 02 Apr 2021
In reply to Michael Gordon:

Yes;

‘travel within all of mainland Scotland permitted (subject to other restrictions that remain in place),

a lot of sins could be in that ‘subject to other restrictions’.  It easily could be travel across Scotland permitted as defined by Levels,

Remember we could travel all across Scotland for Christmas Day but the way the rules were worded meant distance travel was impossible.

The devil will be in the detail and the polls.

Post edited at 16:01
 Fat Bumbly2 02 Apr 2021
In reply to ScraggyGoat:Just back from a postcode lottery busting road bike* run passing some honeypots. No sign of police anywhere but they have been jumping up and down telling us they will do Edinburgh folk found on our beaches all week. 
 

The local within our local authorities thing is academic for  many of us stuck in small areas left over from the failed gerrymander of the 1990s.  Hope Aberdeen folk have the sense to say sod it.
 

* probably legal given start point.

Post edited at 16:23
 daftdazza 03 Apr 2021
In reply to Robert Durran:

Good on you Robert for getting out over night and not being intimidated by police or locals while being entirely within the rules. 

Current situation is mad, and up to everyone to do there own risk assessment and make own judgement calls.  Personally I am no longer complying to stay local rule. Yesterday I met a couple of friends in aberfoyle for a 4 hours mtb ride, entirely safe and harmless, I usually cycle from Glasgow to aberfoyle, visit the butcher for breakfast, or go to bike cafe for a coffee, so yesterday only difference was we safely drove 40 minuets there and visited the same outlets post ride.

As a country we need to stop looking at cases and mainly focus on pressure on NHS and hospital admission, all which continues to lessen, the pandemic is pretty much over for Scotland and up to us as individuals to safe enough is enough regarding travel restrictions and not comply, or stick to the rule as we see fit and safe. 

hairdressers open next week and churches will be fairly busy this weekend, and government still wants to ban people from enjoying the outdoors, at current stage of the pandemic all of the above are entirely safe, but one things is 100 percent safe and that's traveling to visit friends or family outdoors or partaking in outdoors recreation no matter where it may be.

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 Robert Durran 03 Apr 2021
In reply to daftdazza:

> Good on you Robert for getting out over night and not being intimidated by police or locals while being entirely within the rules. 

Not within the rules but within the law. If I had understood what the rules actually we're I'm not sure I'd have gone and now I'm not sure what I shall do the next three weeks. 

Anyway, having just pottered around the Rannoch area yesterday on my bad knees, I dossed last night right next to the Aberdeenshire notice at Glenshee and have used the 5 mile rule to potter in Aberdeenshire and then in Angus today, all without further brushes with the police. Usual hill-going lay-bys all fairly busy today, obviously not with locals.

 JohnnyW 04 Apr 2021
In reply to Dave Hewitt:

> Incidentally, I'm not long back in from a couple of hours on Earl's Hill to the west of Stirling - the thing with masts on, a very good viewpoint. 

My old house

 Dave Hewitt 04 Apr 2021
In reply to JohnnyW:

> My old house

Gosh - the house at the foot of the track? How long did you live there? Must have felt quite bleak at times - it's over 1000ft up and not exactly handy for the pub or shops.

 Robert Durran 05 Apr 2021
In reply to UKC/UKH News:

So driving along my local motorway this morning, there is a big lit up banner saying "stay local". Meanwhile on the R4 news I am told that people in Scotland can "travel freely within their council area". And the Scotgov website tells me to "keep journeys to a minimum within my area".

No wonder people are confused.

And, as for today's big news, no I don't want to go to a f****** garden centre. Ever.

 OwenM 05 Apr 2021
In reply to UKC/UKH News:

Unfortunately I heard reports of the carparks at Ben A'an and Balmaha being ramed full and council staff being verbally abused. Doesn't bode well for summer. 

 Sturmundrang 06 Apr 2021
In reply to UKC/UKH News:

How can you possibly dictate to people to stay local and "stay safe" when you are simultaneously reporting that Will Bosi is over in Spain climbing? Doesn't make sense to me....

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