| Good afternoon,
Welcome to your coronavirus update from The Scotsman. Before we begin, please consider taking out a digital subscription with us from just £3 a month for unlimited access to all our stories. Or you can now give the gift of a digital subscription to a loved one here. Readers of this newsletter can get a 20% discount on gift subscriptions with the promo code SCOTGIFT20. Nearly 40% of Covid-19 cases in Scotland linked to new strain of virus More than one in three Covid-19 cases in Scotland are likely to be linked to the new mutated version of the virus. Concerns around the high transmissability of the virus have also led to Nicola Sturgeon ordering mainland Scotland to be under level four restrictions for a minimum of three weeks from Boxing Day. Read the latest on the new strain of coronavirus here. Experts warn East Lothian could be the epicentre of Covid-19 after Christmas The Scottish Government’s scientific advisers show that the region is the most likely council area in Scotland to record more than 300 cases per 100,000 people in the week following Christmas. Experts have warned that East Lothian could be the epicentre of the coronavirus following the planned relaxing of restrictions on Christmas Day. Read more on why experts are pinpointing the area of the epicentre. More headlines from today Travel between UK and South Africa is banned - and recenr visitors must quarantine Is the South African Covid-19 strain more infectious than the UK strain of the virus? More than 300 people waited a week or more for contact tracing interview Before you leave... It has a been a tough year for all of us, however, we've got through 2020 together. We'd like to thank you all for your support of us throughout the year, and we look forward to bringing you quality news, features and exclusives in the new year. We would like to take this opportunity to wish you and your family a very merry Christmas from everyone here at the The Scotsman. Have one on us. >> For the latest breaking coronavirus news as it happens, keep up to date with our live blog. Thank you for reading and stay safe, Graham Falk | 