“Scotland has recorded one solitary death from Covid-19 today, just as it did the day before”, writes the IEA’s Head of Lifestyle Economics Christopher Snowdon, but from Friday, “its social life will grind almost to a halt” when Nicola Sturgeon’s new bans on the sale of alcohol indoors come into action, including the forced closure of pubs and bars.

In an article for The Spectator, Chris argues that while Nicola Sturgeon is insistent that the new regulations do not amount to a second lockdown, if the Scottish government continues with this strategy of scapegoating the hospitaliy sector, “we are in for a long, lonely winter of bankruptcies and unemployment.”