Areas of Vale of Leven are completely clear of Covid 19. Alexandria from the air by Craig Jump of Turkey Red Photography, Strathleven House, Dumbarton
Are you living in a high risk area where you are likely to come into contact with people who have contracted Covid-19. Public Health Scotland has launched a dashboard which members of the public can use to discover information on coronavirus in their area. Updated daily, it will include information on testing, admissions to hospital, deaths and cases sorted by neighbourhood areas.
MSPs Liam McArthur, Jackie Baillie and the deadly virus causing the pandemic. Artwork by Gemma Fraser
By Democrat reporter
Scottish Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur has expressed relief that the Scottish Government is “finally” providing the “neighbourhood by neighbourhood” break downs of new positive cases of coronavirus.
He said: “Finally we’re getting the neighbourhood by neighbourhood data we need to understand the local threat the virus presents to communities across the country.
“Liberal Democrats have been appealing to the government to publish this specific information for months.
“Up until now people living in the Highland health board area [which covers as far south as Cove and Kilcreggan on the Rosneath Peninsula] were none the wiser as to whether new cases in their area were being recorded in Campbeltown or Cape Wrath.
“Understanding what is actually happening locally is especially important to people who were shielding and still remain vulnerable.
“This has been a long slog to get information that is pin point relevant for people’s everyday lives.
“Local flare ups and workplace specific spikes have been a regular feature of the last few months and will inevitably be part of the picture going forward. While we must all remain vigilant, this level of detail allows people to make more informed decisions about their activities.”
Dumbarton, Vale of Leven and Helensburgh MSP Jackie Baillie welcomed the publication of the neighbourhood breakdown figures.
She said: “It is certainly welcome news that there has been a decline in the number of new cases being reported in West Dunbartonshire
“We now have the 12th highest number of cases across Scotland’s 32 local authorities. This is a marked improvement on a couple of months back when our area had some of the highest case figures in Scotland.
“However, now is not the time to become complacent. We still have the third highest total number of cases per 100,000 people and have the eighth highest figures for the total number of cases per 100,000 over the last 7 days.
“We clearly still have a long way to go in combating this virus in our local community.
“Furthermore, statistics are now showing how the virus is effecting our community at a more localised level.
“New figures show that in Jamestown, Gartocharn and Ardoch, there are spikes in the number of new cases per 100,000 people that have been reported in the last seven days. We are also seeing worryingly high case numbers in Bellsmyre.
“The only area within West Dunbartonshire that has not reported any new cases in the last seven days has been Alexandria.