Edinburgh, January 4: Scotland on Monday has imposed a nationwide lockdown for the rest of January amid a surge in COVID-19 cases. Country's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon made an announcement regarding this in the Scottish Parliament. The lockdown will come into force from midnight, i.e. 0000 GMT on Tuesday.

"We have decided to introduce from midnight (0000 GMT Tuesday), for the duration of January, a legal requirement to stay at home, except for essential purposes. This is similar to the lockdown of March last year," reported AFP quoting Sturgeon as saying in Scottish Parliament. UK PM Johnson Warns COVID-19 Lockdown May Get Tougher.

Statement of Nicola Sturgeon:

The development will pressure the Boris Johnson government in the United Kingdom. On Sunday, Johnson also hinted the stricter lockdown restrictions might be implemented as the country reported 54,990 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday. UK Coronavirus Lockdown Will Last ‘Significant’ Period: British Govt.

In the past few days, COVID-19 cases in the UK have risen drastically. The increase in numbers is also due to the new variant of coronavirus. Reopening of schools and colleges have been cancelled in and around the capital city of London.

"Schools are safe. It's very important to stress that. The threat to young people, kids, is very small. The risk to staff is very small. The benefits of education are so huge," the Prime Minister said. COVID-19 cases in the UK have crossed 2,700,000 so far, while the death toll has risen to 75,400.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 04, 2021 10:03 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).