Responding to reports that Wales will go into a national lockdown from Friday, 23 October until Monday, 9 November, Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie said:

"Trust in Government needs to be high if we are to get on top of the virus. Yet faith in the Scottish Government's handling of the pandemic has been undermined over the last few months with the return of students, the weakness of the quarantine spot checks and the slow response times for Test and Protect.

Scottish Liberal Democrat health spokesperson Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP has today pressed for urgent action to tackle the pressures and barriers facing carers in Scotland.

His comments come as the Health and Care Experience Survey for 2019-2020 reveals that:

• The percentage of respondents agreeing they "have a good balance between caring and other things in my life" has fallen steadily from 69% in 2013/14 to 64% in 2019/20
• The percentage of respondents agreeing they "feel supported to continue caring" has fallen steadily from 43% in 2013/14 to 34% in 2019/20
• The percentage of respondents agreeing that "local services are well coordinated for the person I look after" has fallen steadily from 47% in 2013/14 to 38% in 2019/20

Responding to the new figures showing that targets for successful twelve-week smoking quits in the most deprived areas were only met in 5 of the 14 health boards in 2019/20, Scottish Liberal Democrat public health spokesperson Cllr Rosemary Bruce commented:

"Smoking is still responsible for thousands of deaths a year in Scotland. Now that harm is being compounded by the virus because people who smoke are more likely to get more serious symptoms if they catch it.

The Conservatives have continually promised to back British farmers throughout the Brexit process, but their failure last week to uphold our high food standards reveals just how hollow those promises were.

Our high agricultural standards must be protected in international trade deals and after the transition period.

Conservative MPs have rejected all 10 cross-party amendments to the Government's Immigration Bill passed by the House of Lords earlier this month, including three from the Liberal Democrats.

The 28-day time limit on immigration detention (Amendment 6) - introduced by Liberal Democrat peer Baroness Hamwee in the House of Lords - was rejected by 328 votes to 264.

After it was announced that older pupils in Wales won't return to school straight after the October break as part of a 'firebreak', and Scotland's largest teaching union the EIS called for clarity from the Scottish Government on its triggers for school closures, Scottish Liberal Democrat education spokesperson Beatrice Wishart MSP said:

Welcome to the Weekly Whip. Your one-stop shop for Lib Dem Parliamentary updates, covering the week that was and the week to come.

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Weekly Whip w/c 12th October

Monday 12th October

Monday was a key day for British Farming, but the House started off with a Prime Ministerial Statement from Boris Johnson regarding the new tier system for Covid-restrictions. Ed Davey and Munira Wilson led the charge for the Lib Dems, with Ed stressing that time is of the essence; the British people have made painful sacrifices and the government cannot squander the opportunity to get solid testing systems in place. Munira raised another glitch in the trace system which attributes positive cases for students to their home addresses, rather than university addresses, skewing critical data.

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie has today raised questions about contact tracing reinforcements after another week of delays.

Speaking on Good Morning Scotland this week, Health Secretary Jeane Freeman said there were around 800 active contact tracers working in Scotland and that the government is "aiming for around a 1000 over the coming period".

Orkney and Shetland MP, Alistair Carmichael, has condemned Boris Johnson's "Brexit melodrama" after the Prime Minister said that the country must prepare for a no-deal exit from the transition period. The Prime Minister's spokesperson later said that there was "no point" in EU negotiators coming to London for the next round of trade talks.

Responding to the news that Margaret Ferrier MP will avoid charges from the Met Police because the new regulations are applicable only after September 28 2020, Scottish Liberal Democrat health spokesperson Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP said:

"Margaret Ferrier may have side-stepped the new regulations by one day but it's clear to people across the nation that she broke the rules and acted in a selfish and dangerous manner.