What time is Nicola Sturgeon speaking today? What will she say?

23 February 2021, 12:35 | Updated: 23 February 2021, 13:08

First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon will reveal the country's route out of lockdown later today.

Ms Sturgeon has previously said Scotland's plan will be "broadly similar" to the UK government's but "not identical".

She said the data for the nations is different but the principles of easing restrictions will be the same.

So what time is the First Minister speaking today? How can you watch the Scottish lockdown announcement? And what is she expected to say?

What time is Nicola Sturgeon speaking today?

The First Minister will outline her plans to MSPs in Holyrood at 2.15pm today, February 23.

How can I watch Scotland’s lockdown update?

You will be able to watch Ms Sturgeon’s update on most news channels as well as on the Scottish Parliament website.

What will Ms Sturgeon say?

Ms Sturgeon is expected to prioritise schools but, in one key difference to Prime Minister Boris Johnson's roadmap, is not expected to provide specific reopening dates.

Speaking to the Scottish Parliament on Monday, she said: "Our plans out of lockdown will not be identical. They are already not identical because we've got some kids back in school today which is not the case in England until into March, so we will not be identical but I think there will be broad similarities."

She added: "Similar to us, it seems that they have prioritised children and education and getting life back to normal before doing other things.

"So I think the principles will be the same: we're living through the same pandemic.

"There is a limit to how much it is sensible to diverge in the circumstances we're facing in common, but clearly we will make our own judgments about the particular order and the particular timing of that because the data is not identical in each of the four nations."

Ms Sturgeon said her plan would give indications of the phasing of restrictions easing.

She said: "We will seek to set out tomorrow an indicative order of priority and the likely phasing of firstly the gradual lifting of the current lockdown restrictions and then, in due course, a return to the geographic levels system when we would decide whether all or parts of the country may move out of Level 4 and into Level 3, and of course that's the part where more parts of the economy will start to open up.”