Extension of emergency Covid measures to go before Holyrood

A six-month extension of emergency coronavirus measures will be debated in the Scottish Parliament next week.

The proposal would see the increased six-month notice period for evictions and the ability for courts to continue to hold hearings remotely continued.

Other measures, such as those allowing marriages and civil partnerships to be processed under Covid restrictions, are proposed to expire.

Covid recovery secretary John Swinney formally introduced the Coronavirus (Extension and Expiry) (Scotland) Bill to parliament on Friday.

So-called “stop the clock” measures on the duration of guardianship orders and certificates authorising medical treatment for adults with incapacity will also expire, as the regular systems for processing these resume.

Emergency measures protecting children’s rights will also expire, under the proposed legislation.

The extended measures would continue until March 31 next year, but deputy first minister Swinney said the government would report to parliament every two months and was committed to expiring or suspending any provisions that were no longer necessary.

The Scottish Parliament extended the emergency law prohibiting enforcement of eviction notices until September 30, 2021, but there is no eviction ban in areas that are in level two or lower – currently all of Scotland.

From January 22, 2021, if you lived in an area under either coronavirus protection level three or four, Sheriff Officers could not evict you.