A top covid advisor to Nicola Sturgeon and the Scottish Government has urged parents in Scotland and the rest of the UK to vaccinate their children as soon as possible.
Professor Devi Sridhar of Edinburgh University was asked about the concerns parents may feel about vaccinating their child as the country works to give all of their adult population a first dose of the coronavirus vaccine.
Looking to other countries such as the United States and Israel, she noted that giving the vaccine to those who are at school will be a vital next step in terms of controlling transmission.
Speaking on the Good Morning Britain programme, she said: "My view is other countries who have started vaccination for the over 12s shows that this is the group we need to cover."
Discussing the fears over side effects or deaths from the vaccine, Prof Sridhar aimed to reassure parents that the vaccination is extremely low risk.
She added: "It's a choice for parents or families who fell they want to take this up. However, zero children have died because of the vaccine and its side effects. There have been some very rare cases of children suffering from side effects, however no child has died from taking the vaccine."
It comes as 2,639 new cases of Covid-19 were reported in Scotland yesterday (June 27), after a week of figures surging across the country.
