Covid: Testing plea as Dundee case numbers surge

People in Dundee have been urged to get tested for Covid-19 after the city recorded the highest rate of cases in Scotland.

Dundee currently has 271.9 cases per 100,000 people, with a test positivity rate of 7.8%.

Council leader John Alexander warned that a further deterioration would "likely and inevitably" lead to Dundee remaining at a higher lockdown level.

More than 1,000 pupils in the city are currently self-isolating.

The case rate in the city has risen dramatically since mid-May when Dundee had fewer than 15 cases per 100,000 people.

Across Scotland as a whole the average case rate is now 110.2/100,000 and the reproduction (R) number is thought to be between 1.2 and 1.4, a slight increase on last week.

There will be additional testing sessions in Menzieshill and Douglas areas of the city next week, as well as continued drop-ins at Dundee International Sports Centre (Disc) and in the city centre.

Lateral flow self-test kits are also being distributed to parents and carers.

Mr Alexander said a return to a higher level of restrictions would be "a disaster" for the economy and local businesses.

He said: "We all need to do our bit to protect them and stop the city going backwards, irrespective of your view on restrictions."

Mr Alexander added that "each and every one of our actions has a consequence."

He said: "Let's not get complacent and go backwards, please get tested and most of all, please, please get your vaccine."

NHS Tayside's director of public health Dr Emma Fletcher said that testing "makes a difference", highlighting a recent surge in cases in Kirriemuir, Angus.

She said: "Kirriemuir was a hotspot last week. We moved the testing units into the town and the community showed up in their hundreds to get tested.

"It worked. The chain of infection was broken, as people who turned out to be positive have isolated."