The British Medical Association has alleged there are “supply issues” in Scotland preventing vaccines from reaching doctors. Ruth Davidson, Conservative leader in the Scottish Parliament, attacked the SNP’s record claiming many doctors “have not yet actually received any supplies”.
Ms Sturgeon commented: “Supplies are allocated to Scotland, they are then drawn down to Scotland and we vaccinate as quickly as we possibly can.
“Last week we published detailed estimates of supply now and well into the future, we put that out in a document that went on the web and we circulated it.
“I hope I’m not about to use unparliamentary language Presiding Officer, but the UK Government had something of what I can only describe as a hissy fit about us doing that, and we have agreed in consultation with them to take away the publication of those supply figures.
“They don’t want us to be open about supply for reasons of commercial confidentiality, and while I don’t necessarily entirely agree with the reasoning behind that, we have agreed with their request.”
The British Government responded with fury last week after Ms Sturgeon’s administration published details of the UK’s vaccine supply.
A senior source told The Scotsman this “risks suppliers coming under pressure from other countries”.
The UK has succeeded in acquiring and administering significantly more coronavirus vaccines than a number of other European countries.
Thus far Scotland has been given 717,000 of the two coronavirus vaccines current in use in Britain.
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“The GPs know who their patients are and they know how to contact them.
“The only thing that’s missing is for too many practices across Scotland they have not yet actually received any supplies.”
On Tuesday the UK recorded another 1,610 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for coronavirus.
This was the highest daily figure for Britain since the pandemic began last year.
As a result, the total UK death toll reached more than 90,000.
Ms Sturgeon’s record was also attacked by Willie Rennie, the Scottish Liberal Democrat leader.
He commented: “Local people are very anxious and increasingly frustrated about the sluggish pace of the vaccination programme.
“Many are distressed that appointments have been cancelled because the GPs have run out of supplies.
“Last week the Health Secretary admitted that 200,000 doses were stuck in storage in England.
“This week we discover that number may have doubled to 400,000.”
