Nicola Sturgeon will interrupt the planned recess for the Scottish Parliament to make a urgent statement on coronavirus restrictions tomorrow.
The Scottish Government has requested that parliament be recalled following a sharp increase in Covid-19 cases.
The First Minister said that restrictions 'even tighter' than the current Level 4 measures couldn't be ruled out at her last briefing on December 30.
Since then a further 7,298 cases have been confirmed across Scotland.
Taking to social media on Saturday, Ms Sturgeon described case numbers as 'worryingly high' and added that the 'new variant is accelerating spread'.
On December 29, over 42% of positive tests processed for Scotland at the Lighthouse lab were linked to the new strain which is 'fast becoming' the most dominant one in Scotland.
The cabinet will meet on Monday to consider further measures to tackle the spread of the virus with the First Minister expected to address parliament a short time later.
An update on whether schools will return on January 18 as planned is expected as the Education Recovery Group are also scheduled to meet.
On Wednesday, the First Minister said: "The new strain has already made a normal scheduled return impossible but we continue to assess whether it will be possible to reopen schools as planned on 18 January.
"That is what we all want and, to be clear, that remains our planning assumption. But we will continue to put the safety of pupils, teachers and staff first. And we will ensure as much notice as possible to parents of any changes we consider to be necessary."
