Nicola Sturgeon: 'I won't have parents over for Christmas dinner and I've not seen them since July'
Nicola Sturgeon has said she will not be having Christmas dinner with her parents this year.
Scotland’s first minister said she had not seen her mother and father since July because of the coronavirus pandemic.
She said she will not be hosting an “indoor Christmas dinner” with extended family next month.
The British government and devolved administrations have agreed to allow people across the UK to form Christmas bubbles of up to three households between 23 and 27 December (22 and 28 December in Northern Ireland).
However, Sturgeon said her family Christmas will be different this year.
“Normally, Christmas, my husband and I would have both our families here in our own home,” she told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Monday.
“We will not be doing that this year.”
Watch: Nicola Sturgeon: ‘Stay at home over Christmas’
She added: “I’ve not seen my parents since July and I would dearly love to see them today and at Christmas, but I don’t want to put them at risk when a vaccine is so close.
“We might go and have a family walk somewhere, but the idea of an indoors Christmas dinner is something we will not do this year.”
Ahead of the festive bubbles, scientists have warned families to self-isolate for 10 days before Christmas to protect elderly relatives, and Christmas shoppers have been advised not to spend more than 15 minutes in stores.
The government has been urged to implement strict rules to avoid severe travel disruption over the Christmas period.
Sturgeon has been criticised for her handling of the coronavirus outbreak, particularly in relation to care homes in Scotland.
She admitted on Monday that mistakes had been made.
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“The decisions I have had to take and the implications of those will live with me forever,” she told the Today programme.
“I have never tried to pretend that mistakes haven’t been made, in particular over care homes. That will certainly stay with me forever.”
Last month, a report found that more than 100 people who tested positive for COVID-19 were discharged from hospitals into care homes in Scotland without first receiving a negative test.
Last week, Sturgeon said she was unable to reveal the total number of people discharged into care homes without first testing negative.
“I can’t give that information because this is clinical decisions taken by clinicians,” she said.
Watch: ‘Try to limit Christmas interaction’, says Sturgeon
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