GLASGOW’S council leader has warned nearly 200 schools in the city could be closed if the ban on indoor household gatherings does not cut the Covid-19 rate.

Susan Aitken said the restrictions announced by Nicola Sturgeon were a “first step” and could be ramped up as soon as next Wednesday.

She said: “I do hope that we don’t have to get to the point where we are closing businesses and I definitely hope we don’t have to get to the point where we are closing schools.”

Aitken was then asked in a Radio Scotland interview: “Presumably, though, that is still a possibility, if the numbers don’t stop climbing?”

The council chief replied: “Of course it’s a possibility, yes. This is a first step. It will be reviewed in a week and the review in a week will be to see if any additional new restrictions are required.

“It will be at least a fortnight before we step forward again out of these restrictions.

“But it will be reviewed in a week and we will be able to see at that point what the impact of these limited new restrictions have been on the numbers, and at that point we will have to make a decision – the public health authorities will have to make a decision – about whether we require any new restrictions or additional restrictions or not.

“I absolutely hope that we do not get to that point and that’s why I would really urge everyone in Glasgow please, please, follow the new guidelines because none of us wants to have to take another step backwards.”

The warning came as it emerged that a total of 4228 people have died in Scotland with confirmed or suspected coronavirus, according to the National Records of Scotland (NRS).

A total of six deaths relating to Covid-19 were registered between August 24 and August 30. The statistics differ to those announced daily by the Scottish Government because they include suspected or probable cases, and are therefore higher.

Nicola Sturgeon said that based on the Government figures, one more patient had died, bringing the total number of fatalities to 2495.

Speaking in the Scottish Parliament, the First Minister said 20,788 people had tested positive for coronavirus in Scotland, up by 156 from 20,632 the day before.

Some 86 of these new cases are in Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

There are 258 people in hospital with confirmed or suspected Covid-19, a decrease of six in 24 hours.

Of these patients, five were in intensive care, down one.

She also warned that anyone who has returned from Greece in the past few days should be “particularly careful about social interactions”, and said people should be “very cautious” about travelling abroad if it is not necessary.

The First Minister also spoke about new guidance introduced in the Glasgow, East Renfrewshire and West Dunbartonshire council areas, where she said the level of Covid-19 cases was “particularly high and rising”.

Sturgeon added: “Given the toll we know Covid can take, doing nothing was not an option.”

The Scottish Government’s budget has also been revealed to have grown by 14% since it was set in February because of an additional £6 billion in coronavirus funding from the UK Government.

Analysis by the Scottish Fiscal Commission (SFC) found there has been an increase of £3bn since the summer budget revision was announced to Parliament in May, a total increase of £6bn since the budget was set in February.

The budget is now £48.5bn, up from the £42.5bn in February.

SFC chairwoman Dame Susan Rice said the Scottish Government was getting “significant additional funding” to support the response to the pandemic but warned the economic impact has created uncertainty for future Scottish budgets.