RICHARD Leonard was accused of behaving irresponsibly yesterday after he suggested the Scottish Government’s decision to keep Edinburgh in level 3 was “political”.

Nicola Sturgeon has come in for criticism from many in the capital after she declined to ease restrictions on Tuesday.

Many in the city had expected the Government to allow the city to move down to level 2.

Speaking at First Minister’s Questions in the Scottish Parliament, Sturgeon said she and her Cabinet would “continue to take careful and considered decisions” on what level of restrictions should be applied.

She added: “If we don’t continue to apply real caution, then we may end up in a situation where over the next few weeks and over the remainder of the winter this runs out of control again.”

The First Minister said case numbers and test positivity were rising again in Edinburgh. She said easing restrictions against a rising trend in infections would risk the situation rapidly and seriously running out of control.

Adam McVey, the SNP leader of the City of Edinburgh Council, is among those who have questioned the decision to keep the area in level 3.

Leonard raised the issue at First Minister’s Questions, telling MSPs: “This about more than just the city of Edinburgh; it is about transparency and public trust and confidence. The point is this: by overriding recommendations that are based on the available data and the advice of her own public experts, the First Minister risks losing the trust and confidence of the public.

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“Too often, the Government appears to assume that people will act in an irresponsible way. That assumption is bringing businesses in Edinburgh and across the country to breaking point.

“The five-tier system was supposed to give people and businesses certainty and clarity, but we are seeing a return to arbitrary and ad-hoc decision making. Decisions such as the one that was made this week appear to be political rather than scientific. Will the First Minister accept that not only does that undermine her stated commitment to limiting economic harms, it erodes public confidence in the Government’s message and, in the end, it will deter compliance with it?”

Sturgeon hit out at Leonard. “Only one person in this exchange is being irresponsible and, frankly, that is not me,” she said. “Let us take a step back and reflect on how ridiculous the content of Richard Leonard’s question was.

“He said that I am taking political decisions against the City of Edinburgh Council – the same City of Edinburgh Council that is led by a Scottish National Party politician. Why on Earth would I do that? He said that I am taking decisions – apparently political ones – that are unpopular. Why would I want to take decisions that are unpopular if there was no need to?

“I have very clearly set out the situation in Edinburgh and why it is important that we do not ease restrictions when we have a rising trend of infections and test positivity in the city of Edinburgh.

“If we did that, I would be standing here in a couple of weeks talking about a situation in Edinburgh that had run out of control, which would perhaps mean putting Edinburgh under level 4 restrictions.

“Do you know who would be first in the queue to attack me for doing that? One Richard Leonard, I suspect. The Government and I will continue to take decisions as safely and responsibly as we can.”

The exchange came as Scotland recorded another 50 coronavirus deaths and 933 new cases.

The First Minister also revealed that 5330 people in Scotland have now been vaccinated.