Nightclubs to be capped at 100 capacity in Scotland as COVID restrictions tighten

Scotland is tightening its COVID restrictions, introducing new sets of measures including a 100-capacity cap at all nightclubs.

Nightclubs are categorised as an "indoor standing event," meaning starting on Boxing Day, they will be limited to a crowd of 100 people.

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Clubbers will be required to maintain a social distance of one metre within venues, according to Scottish Government regulations.

However, the BBC reports that this could force nightclubs to close.

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Elsewhere, Hogmanay celebrations in Edinburgh have been cancelled, and football matches will be practically spectator-free.

Nicola Sturgeon said the much higher transmissibility of the Omicron variant meant that large gatherings "have the potential to become very rapid super-spreader events, putting large numbers at risk of getting infected very quickly".

"Limiting these events helps reduce the risk of widespread transmission. It also cuts down the transmission risks associated with travel to and from such events

"And these large events put an additional burden on emergency services, especially the police and ambulance services.

"At a time when these services are already under severe pressure and also dealing with high staff absences, limiting large scale events will help them focus on delivering essential services to the public".

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Sturgeon emphasised that the government's first goal was to ensure that schools reopened as usual following the Christmas break.

She also recommended individuals limit their interaction with people from other houses as much as possible in the run-up to Christmas, and spend as much time as possible at home.

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A number of people have been making comments and jokes about the news of staying 1-metre apart in the club on social media.

One person tweeted the infamous meme of the man speaking in the ear of a woman and captioned it "“I SAID YOU’RE STANDING TOO CLOSE”.

Others are questioning how this new restriction will be monitored. One person said: "Nobody in the Scottish government has been to a nightclub clearly. Who is going to police this exactly?".

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Aneesa Ahmed is Mixmag's Digital Intern, follow her on Twitter