Dumfries and Galloway will enter tier one of the Scottish Government’s coronavirus restriction system on Friday.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon confirmed the move when addressing Holyrood on the weekly review of tier levels in place across the country.
The region has been in level two since the system was introduced in November and there was some frustration when that remained the case last week despite falling case numbers.
However, from 6pm on Friday, the region will be in level one. That means that pubs and restaurants can serve alcohol indoors and outdoors and be open until 10.30pm.
It also means the reopening of “wet bars” – pubs which don’t have a kitchen.
Another change is that up to eight people from three separate households can now meet outdoors – although the ban on meeting in private homes remains.
Ms Sturgeon said the region had shown “consistently low levels for some weeks”, with the rate last week at 23 per 100,000 cases.
The 11 local authority areas - including Glasgow, Lanarkshire and Ayrshire - that have spent the last few weeks at level four will be moved down to level three on Friday.
The move comes as the latest figures show there were three cases in Dumfries and Galloway in the past 24 hours. That takes the total for the region since the start of the pandemic to 1,185.
There have been a further 692 in Scotland in the past day, taking the total to 101,475.
Today has also seen the beginning of the coronvirus vaccination programme, with the first people un Dumfries and Galloway receiving their jab at DGRI.
