PUBS, restaurants and hotels in Scotland are set to finally see "some light at the end of a pretty long tunnel", with plans to potentially open them from next month.

Tourism Secretary Fergus Ewing yesterday revealed that under the current Scottish Government plans, tourism and hospitality businesses could reopen on July 15.

This provisional date for a progression into Phase 3 of the routemap out of lockdown, however, comes with the caveat that progress in suppressing coronavirus continues.

Mr Ewing said coronavirus lockdown restrictions, which forced the closure of pubs, clubs, hotels and restaurants in March, has been “quite harrowing and even catastrophic for some businesses”.

But he said the prospect of UK holidaymakers having staycations in Scotland instead of holidays abroad this summer could help the ailing sector.

Speaking on BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme, he said: “I hope people throughout the UK will perhaps take the advantage of having a staycation rather than a foreign holiday.

“The aim is to give tourism a boost for the remainder of the summer, provided of course the science is with us.”

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The minister said he is "very keen" to have a marketing campaign prior to the July 15 date to help boost the industry further.

Mr Ewing said: “I hope that our friends in other parts of the UK will perhaps come to Scotland rather than maybe go on a plane somewhere, so there maybe opportunities that will arise.

“I am very very keen to see us revive our tourism industry because this period has been quite harrowing and even catastrophic for some businesses.

“The toll on people who have lost their livelihoods overnight in lockdown has been a very heavy one indeed.

“I hope and believe the announcement yesterday has given some hope and some light at the end of a pretty long tunnel.”

He added: “It is absolutely essential that businesses who after all have had no income for 12 weeks now are able to retrieve from this summer season some successful trading.”

Mr Ewing said the reopening of tourism depends on restrictions on travel being lifted, with this not scheduled to happen until Phase 3 of the four-point plan for lifting lockdown.

By then it is proposed Scots will be able to drive beyond their local area for leisure and exercise purposes, with public transport operating full services – although capacity will “still be significantly limited to allow for physical distancing”.

The earliest date for that is July 9, with Mr Ewing stressing “the science and health advice must be in the right place”.

He added that in the Scottish Government “our judgment was July 15 provides sufficient time to prepare”.