Lockdown measures 'could be the nail in the coffin' for Balloch businesses two miles from less restricted areas

From this evening, tougher lockdown measures are coming into force for most parts of Glasgow and the west for the next three weeks - despite some of those areas being within two miles of less-restricted local authorities.

Level Four restrictions, which come into force from this evening in 11 local authorities mean all non-essential shops, restaurants and cafes will have to close.

It also means it is against the law for residents in level three and four areas to travel outwith their council area.

However, for some businesses in Balloch, West Dunbartonshire, they find themselves within a two-mile car journey of Argyll and Bute - a tier two local authority.

Sinead McMahon, owner of Cucina Ristorante in Balloch, said: "It's a real tough time of year anyway - you're now battling against coronavirus, the dark cold nights, the weather impact and of course Christmas has an impact.

"At this time of year it's really, really tough, you only really scrape by anyway, so this could be the nail in the coffin for a lot of businesses."

Loch Lomond Shores, which is a major tourist attraction in the west of Scotland, has already suffered from the lack of travellers this year - and will now have to close for the three week period.

Audrey Calder from Loch Lomond Shores in Balloch said: "We're all devastated to be honest because despite having a strong bounce back post-lockdown, the businesses here really needed to finish the year strongly - and that's not going to happen now.

"We've already seen the effects of the tier three restrictions which meant people from Glasgow, where we're only 20 minutes away, couldn't come and visit us.

"We had hoped that would suffice and we wouldn't have to go into tier four so it's a huge blow to everybody here."

Despite being within two miles of the Argyll and Bute council area border, Ms Calder says she doesn't know if those in the council will benefit much from the decision.

She said: "I don't think tier two are particularly benefitting from being surrounded by tier four people either, so I think everybody is losing out on this situation."

However, for those in Argyll and Bute, they're hoping residents in the local area support them while travel restrictions remain in place for others.

Johnny Aitken, food and beverage director at The Lodge on Loch Lomond, said: "Business now dictates that we only open Thursday-Sunday, and that's just because of the general downturn across the sector.

"Moving forward when it becomes law, we're asking guests who thought about coming to refer to the restrictions within their area and make an informed choice, however we're really looking forward to welcoming guests back when restrictions are lifted.

"Argyll and Bute's a big area and we have a great local following so we're hopeful and looking forward to welcoming guests from Argyll and Bute and surrounding areas in tier two over the next few weeks."

The restrictions come into force from 6pm tonight (Friday 20 November) and will stay in place until Friday 11 December.

Hear the latest news on Clyde 1 on FM, DAB, smart speaker or the Rayo app.