LABOUR’S shadow secretary of state for Scotland has called for this weekend’s Old Firm match to be postponed.
Ian Murray said it would be irresponsible for the game to go ahead if there was even a hint that it could be a threat to public health.
On Thursday Nicola Sturgeon appealed to Sky Sports to broadcast the game for free, saying it would be a “small but important contribution” to help “keep people safe”.
READ MORE: Sky Sports reject Nicola Sturgeon's plea to show Old Firm for free
But the SPFL have hit back at the First Minister, saying it would be “unreasonable” for the broadcaster to “give up Scottish football’s crown jewels.”
Currently, pubs in Glasgow are closed and there’s a ban on household visits, meaning fans will only be able to watch the game on the TV if they have a subscription or a weekend pass.
There’s been widespread speculation Rangers and Celtic fans could be heading south of the Border to watch tomorrow’s game in a bar.
One pub in Blackpool has already made the decision to close its doors this weekend, saying it had received more than 1500 booking requests to watch the match.
The Gallant Pioneer announced that it usually “lives for days like Saturday” but didn't want to risk breaking any restrictions
Murray told the BBC’s Good Morning Scotland that it was extraordinary that the game was still being played.
The Edinburgh South MP added: “We've got businesses in my constituency and right across Scotland closing down, we've got people worried about their livelihoods, we've got people really worried about the spread of Covid in this second wave and really if there's a threat to public health it should be postponed.”
Murray, who is a former director of Hearts, was asked why he wasn’t calling for his team’s game to be postponed. The Edinburgh side are due to play Dundee in the championship tonight.
The Labour politician said he didn’t think that game was a “threat to public health”
“And if it was I would fully expect the First Minister and the Scottish Government to come together with football to postpone the games that they feel might be a threat to public health,” he added.
Murray continued: “The First Minister obviously has some kind of data to show that people are threatening to or are likely to mix and households are likely to travel to watch the games.
“I don't think people would be traveling across the Border to watch Hearts Dundee this evening.
“But the key point here is that if anything is a threat to public health, if anything is going to undermine the current government guidelines to try and suppress the second wave of coronavirus then they should be postponed.”
Murray suggested the game could potentially be postponed until people are allowed back into stadiums.
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