It is facilitating ineffective Covid restrictions, said Nicola Sturgeon, as the rate of cases in Scotland exceeds that of England.

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Nicola Sturgeon faces further demands to announce an easing of restrictions after her government’s analysis of the pandemic admitted that the rate of Covid in Scotland is higher than that of England.

The Scottish government’s weekly report on the state of the pandemic said Scotland recorded an average of 2,824 cases per million people in the week ending January 6, compared to 2,615 in England.

England’s rate was significantly lower than Wales’ (3481), the report said, despite Boris Johnson’s refusal to follow the strict limits imposed by Ms Sturgeon and Mark Drakeford, Welsh First Minister, on hospitality and big events.

A second Scottish government report revealing the latest models of the pandemic shows that the Omicron wave in Scotland is expected to reach its peak this week, with cases declining rapidly.

The analysis said daily infections would peak at around 70,000 on Thursday or Friday this week before dropping to around 20,000 by the end of the month.

This is much earlier than predictions made by Hamza Yusuf, the health minister, and Professor Jason Leach, the national medical director, who said the Omicron “tsunami” would not peak until late January or early February.

The Scottish government’s two reports were published ahead of a parliamentary statement on Tuesday by Ms Sturgeon, in which she is expected to announce whether any of her restrictions will be lifted next week.

The prime minister said they will remain in their posts until at least next Monday. Warnings that the NHS is facing the most difficult period in its history, with hundreds of staff being forced to self-isolate, you may see them keep them in place for much longer.

But Ms Sturgeon admitted last week that she was rethinking her strategy for dealing with Covid because increased omicron transmission meant restrictions were less effective in curbing its spread.

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