SO, has Christmas been cancelled in Scotland?

Mibbes aye, mibbes naw.

Yes, there will be more restrictions than down south but no, the five-day relaxation of Covid rules in Scotland hasn’t been axed.

If you think a festive visit is “necessary” and you’re travelling to be in a bubble – you still can. Whether you should travel really does lie in your own hands.

Looking on the bright side, there will be more real and searching conversations amongst families about the wisdom or desirability of Christmas visits than ever before. Looking on the darker side, the absence of those expected words “Christmas ban” in Nicola Sturgeon’s briefing, will lead many to assume it’s game back on and the festive break is a carefree time with no need for restriction or reassessment in the light of rising infection levels.

Now of course, if you listened to the whole, longer than usual, briefing Nicola Sturgeon was at pains to make clear she had something new to say. Namely that the period from December 29-27 is a window not a target – a period within which folk might consider one gathering on one day at (preferably) one other household if it’s absolutely necessary – not a five-day trip round all your pals just for the craic. If folk are swithering about travel or have made plans that aren’t essential – her advice was simple. Don’t go anywhere. And furthermore, the safest way to spend Christmas is to stay in your own home and household.

READ MORE: Wales to go back into lockdown after Christmas Covid rule relaxation

The fact such clarification was needed is tacit recognition that the original four-nations announcement has given some folk the green light to plan a festive free-for-all (though admittedly some might have broken restrictions whatever anyone said).

Such a misheard message is not entirely the First Minister’s fault.

The problem with the “four-nations” approach to Christmas is that Boris Johnson’s tendency to deliver a “live it up” narrative clashes with the FM’s much more restrained narrative about the self-same set of rules.

Up until now, Scots could ignore the Prime Minister because we are governed by a different Scotland-specific set of rules. But now the rules are the same and all that differs is the tone, detail and narrative. That’s too subtle a difference to drown out the “get happy” vibes that tend to emanate from Number 10.

During her press briefing, for instance, Nicola Sturgeon was asked about cross-border travel. She replied that it was hard for her to speak for the Prime Minister but she expected folk in Tier 3 areas of London – with concentrations of the new Covid variant – would be told of rule changes to prevent them leaving their council areas over the festive break. But despite advising against such travel, at his own press conference, it seems Boris Johnson has no plans to issue new rules.

So where does that leave Scotland?

As Nicola Sturgeon was speaking, the Welsh First Minister was – once again – the first devolved leader to deviate from the four-nations script, announcing a lockdown on non-essential shops in Wales from the end of trading on Christmas Eve, with an alert Level 4 lockdown starting four days later.

So basically, no Boxing Day sales.

Mark Drakeford said only two households should meet during the festive period – not the four-nations maximum of three.

Opposition parties in Wales have warned of the potential for confusion and mixed messaging, but Mark Drakeford is sticking to his guns. No wonder. Even his “tougher” stance is far weaker than the cancellation of Christmas “easing” demanded in a joint editorial by the The British Medical Journal and the Health Service Journal.

They’ve warned that the five-day relaxation will become a “super-spreader event” and fuel a deadly third wave in January.

Earlier this week, the Scottish public health adviser Professor Devi Sridhar warned “mixing at Christmas is a terrible idea”, adding: “We are going to pay for this at some point.”

It seems most folk actually want the strain of making personal Covid decisions removed by a government clampdown – a snap poll by YouGov yesterday showed 57% of people believe the relaxation of rules over Christmas should be dropped, while 31% say the bubbles should go ahead as planned. That’s almost two to one in favour of keeping current restrictions – and yet the four-nations plan for Covid relaxation creaks on.

It seems quite bizarre and worrying that despite higher infection rates, the UK will ease rules at Christmas just as the Netherlands and Germany are entering total lockdown.

Could the situation yet change?

We all know the Welsh FM used his public health powers to close the border with England in October, so the precedent’s there for Nicola to do the same if infection rates worsen or cross-border travel looks inevitable. Of course, closure might be an empty gesture, since Police Scotland don’t have the officers to check on compliance with current domestic travel restrictions, let alone mount round the clock checkpoint operations at the border.

But imposing restrictions a la Drakeford would get coverage (we can be sure of that) and would guarantee that the “stay at home” message is heard loud and clear by expat Scots thinking of travelling home from London or other Covid hotspots. As it is, they’ll hear Boris Johnson’s changeable mood music, hear nothing very different from Nicola, remember vaguely that Wills and Kate visited by train and assume it’s perfectly OK for them to travel too.

That’s human nature.

Indeed, as soon as the FM’s press briefing was over on Radio Scotland, the presenter’s first question to a political correspondent was: “So the Christmas relaxation of Covid rules remains in place?”

Not the conclusion the FM hoped folk would take from her words.

SO why not cut the festive “window” to three days, as many had forecast, or just dump the Christmas relaxation completely?

Doubtless the First Minister is worried about an angry response to her original decision to adopt the four-nations approach and pelters from Boris Johnson about being a hair shirt-wearing miserabilist.

READ MORE: Are Christmas gifts for teachers banned? Scottish Government confirm coronavirus rules

Whatever the reasons, and they don’t seem clear, it looks as if the Christmas rules won’t now tighten again. Perhaps though, it’s still possible to hammer home some clearer advice.

Philippa Whitford MP told Tuesday’s Newsnight we should all be considering what to do about mum – or any other person living alone nearby at Christmas. “Should she come to you, or should you go to her?” It was a sensible focus and expressed the limits of what and who we should consider visiting – a lone Scot who needs care. And that’s it. Nothing much more.

The First Minister could also re-purpose a memorable phrase she used earlier in the pandemic: “If your life is normal then something is wrong.” Maybe now it’s time to say “if your Christmas is normal, then something is wrong”.

Yes, that could make the SNP leader look like the Rev IM Jolly.

But so what? Scots loved Rikki Fulton’s gloom-laden character.

His festive performances gave us a chance to laugh at ourselves and forget the trials of the year past. It’s a proud heritage.

So, if it is left up to citizens to act with restraint this Christmas, so be it. We’ll try.

But if the tabloids or Prime Minister start giving different messages about a carefree, merry four-nations Yuletide, the First Minister should know she has our full backing to simply call time.