An adviser to the Scottish Government has said that those with the new Brazilian variant used a travel loophole to get into Scotland.
Devi Sridhar, a leading professor and advisor to Nicola Sturgeon, spoke out after it was confirmed that six cases of the coronavirus strain had been identified across the UK. Three of the cases are in Scotland.
The Scottish passengers were said to have travelled from Brazil to Aberdeen, where they were then tested for the virus.
However, on route home, the individuals actually flew from Brazil to Paris and then from Paris to London, meaning they avoided the "red list" of countries put in place by Boris Johnson.
This meant they could travel up to Scotland from inside the UK and avoid a hotel quarantine.
For all the latest coronavirus updates in Scotland follow today's live blog
Professor Sridhar slammed the system that allowed the loophole to happen.
Taking to social media, she said: "[This is] why robust testing and quarantine policies are needed for international travel given the number of circulating variants.
"And why just 'red-list' country approach doesn't work (they flew from Brazil via Paris and London).
"Hopefully quickly contained in this instance."
Due to the potential concerns around this variant, other passengers on the flight used by the three individuals from London to Aberdeen are being contacted.
Speaking about the cases, Health Secretary Jeane Freeman said: "The identification of this new variant is a concern but we are taking every possible precaution.
"We have identified these cases thanks to our use of advanced sequencing capabilities which means we are finding more variants and mutations than many other countries and are therefore able to take action quickly.
"This new variant demonstrates how serious Covid is and reinforces the need to minimise the spread of the virus.
"We would encourage everyone across the country to adhere to the necessary public health restrictions by staying at home except for essential purposes as this is the single best way of staying safe and stopping the spread of this virus."
