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FM reported to police over mask rule breach video

BBC Nicola SturgeonBBC

Nicola Sturgeon has been reported to police after being filmed apparently breaching Scotland's face mask rules.

Footage on social media shows the first minister without a mask in an East Kilbride barber shop, which she had visited on the election campaign trail.

She posted footage of the visit on her own Instagram account with her mask on.

The SNP said Ms Sturgeon realised she was not wearing a mask "within a few seconds" of entering the shop.

Until Monday, it was legally required for people to wear face coverings in many indoor settings in Scotland. The law has now become guidance.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "We can confirm that we have received a complaint which is currently being assessed."

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During the visit to the barber shop on Saturday, Ms Sturgeon shaved a man's beard while journalists took photographs.

The SNP leader later posted footage on her own social media feeds, describing it as "surreal" but one of the best and "scariest" things she had done on the campaign trail.

However, further footage was later posted online showing her interacting with people without her mask on.

A SNP spokesperson said: "The first minister was invited into the barbers during an outdoor visit on the street.

"Within a few seconds, she realised she hadn't put her mask back on and immediately put it on."

'Rule break' claim

In December 2020 Ms Sturgeon apologised for breaching Covid-19 restrictions when she briefly removed her mask at a funeral.

The Scottish Conservatives have condemned the latest apparent breach of the rules as "blatant hypocrisy".

The party's health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane MSP said: "The video clearly shows Nicola Sturgeon isn't practising what she preaches on facemasks.

"She's happy virtue signalling for official photos but behind closed doors it's clear she doesn't believe in her own rules so why should anyone else.

"The public, who have been under these legal Covid restrictions for over two years, deserve an apology for this rule break."

A Scot Liberal Democrat spokesperson added: "It's incumbent on all politicians to set a good example. It looks like Nicola Sturgeon has lost track of what her own rules are."

The BBC has contacted Scottish Labour and the Scottish Greens for comment.

Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak recently rejected calls to resign, despite being fined by police for breaking lockdown rules in Downing Street in June 2020.