SCOTLAND'S coronavirus lockdown will continue for at least another three weeks, Nicola Sturgeon has confirmed.

Ahead of a similar announcement expected from the UK government this afternoon, the First Minister said the “clear advice” was to maintain restrictions into May. 

Relaxing them ahead of conclusive evidence that the virus had been sufficiently suppressed could lead to an "extremely damaging" resrgence, she said.

She said a “test, trace and isolate” strategy would play a “key part” in the transitional exit from the lockdown, but would require more testing capacity and personnel.

She also suggested there would be more intrusive technology in people’s lives which raised privacy issues, an apparent reference to the phone apps used by some Asian countries. 

The Office of Budget Responsibility this week warned the UK economy could shrink by 35 per cent if the long down lasts into the summer.

Speaking at the second First Minister’s Questions session conducted online, Ms Sturgeon also revealed the number of deaths in Scotland involving a laboratory-confirmed case of Covid-19 had increased by 80 overnight to 799.

The number of confirmed cases was up 354 to 7,102 and the number of people in hospital with suspected or confirmed Covid-19 was up 51 to 1,799, including 196 in intensive care, up one.

The number of deaths involving suspected as well as confirmed laboratory cases is understood to be over 1000.

Asked about a potential exit strategy by Green co-leader Alison Johnstone, Ms Sturgeon said: “Unfortunately lockdown is going to continue beyond this week.

“Cobra [the UK emergency group] will meet later on, and other governments have to reach their own decisions.

“My clear advice is that we must continue the lockdown measures for at least another three weeks. 

“While we are increasingly confident that these measures are working, we are not yet confident enough that the virus has been suppressed sufficiently to lift any of these measures, because the risk of doing that would be a resurgence that would be extremely damaging.”

The first minister said the test, trace, isolate approach would not be the only part of an exit strategy, "but it will be a key part".

She said: "It will mean expanding testing capacity beyond 3,500 [daily tests] by the end of the month, and that is why we have plans to take that further.

"It will mean expanding the network that we use to trace contacts, and technology could also have a part to play, although there are significant issues around privacy that we have to work our way through.

"All that work is under way, and it is developing all the time.

"I want both the detail and the general principles that will govern our approach to be open to as much public discussion as possible.

"We all have to live with the virus and with restrictions on our lives, and some of those restrictions are likely to be in place for a considerable time.

"That means that we all have the right, as well as the duty, to understand the approach and to contribute to the discussion about how we best take ourselves forward in a way that balances suppression of the virus with having as much normality in our everyday lives as possible."

Ms Johnstone said later: "It is absolutely right that lockdown should continue to keep us safe, but in this fourth week, many will understandably be starting to feel cooped up and isolated. People need to know there’s a light at the end of the tunnel and a clear exit strategy to get us there.

“The scientific advice is clear. Swift deployment of a test-trace-isolate strategy is the only way we will be able come out of lockdown in the future and prevent further virus peaks. Scotland must build the capacity to do this now. That means the ability to test everyone with symptoms and trace all the people they have been in contact with.

“It is vital we follow scientific advice and look at what has been done in the countries that are now beginning to drop restrictions.”