NICOLA Sturgeon has responded to claims parts of Govanhill's Roma community are leaving the area due to social media rumours.
The First Minister said racism and prejudice are "unacceptable" during the coronavirus crisis and called for people to "pull together and support each other".
Ms Sturgeon was questioned during the Scottish Government's daily COVID-19 press briefing following a statement from local Roma advocacy group Romano Lav.

Speaking in Saturday's Glasgow Times, chairman Davie Donaldson said up to 50 per cent of the Romanian Roma residents of Govanhill had returned to mainland Europe.

READ MORE: Concern after Covid-19 rumours affect Govanhill's Roma

The moves followed a string of claims on social media that Roma people in the are were breaking social distancing rules - but the images being shared were shown to come from other parts of the UK.

Ms Sturgeon said: "I know Govanhill, where the majority of our Roma population live, very well indeed - it’s part of my constituency, it’s where my constituency office is.

"I have seen and heard some of concerns that have been expressed over recent weeks.

"I know examples of pictures, alleging something in Govanhill, turned out to be other parts of UK.

"I would say two things. I know my office has a regular ongoing dialogue with the police about these issues.

"Firstly, the rules on social distancing and isolation apply for everybody and must be adhered to by everybody.

"Secondly, racism and prejudice and trying to stigmatise anybody from any group is as unacceptable during a crisis like this as it is during any other time."

READ MORE: Roma communities 'worst hit by Covid-19', say researchers

In a statement given to the Glasgow Times, Mr Donaldson had said: "Last week several photographs claiming to be of local Roma people breaching social distancing rules appeared on social media. 

"It was evidenced that these photographs were from other cities and taken before the lockdown started. 

"However, these images have created a tense and racialised atmosphere where Govanhill’s Roma communities are placed unfairly under the spotlight regarding social distancing.

"The photograph that has appeared today, April 10, 2020, on social media and [in the press] relates to a small family funeral gathering for a member of the community who has died. 

"We are appalled that, rather than sympathy, Roma people are being attacked at a time when they are losing loved ones."

Govanhill has the second largest Roma population in the UK and the largest in Scotland, with Roma people from several mainland European countries and of various religions.

Roma groups have been established in the community for well over a decade. 

Ms Sturgeon said people must remember the values of "kindness, love and solidarity".

She said: "I don’t want to see anybody feel unsafe or unwelcome in Scotland.

"I think we will handle this emergency crisis situation better, and I think in the main we are handling it well, by coming together and trying to support each other.

"These are tough times for everybody and people’s tempers fray and people’s frustration rise and all of us understand that, but we all just need to remember that people experience these restrictions differently because of different circumstances and I don’t think it’s helpful to ignore that. 

"But ultimately pulling together and supporting each other through this, even as we have to stay physically separate, will help us get through this much more strongly.

"That applies in Govanhill, it applies in every single community across the country.

"I would appeal to people to just remember that the principles and the values of kindness, love and solidarity that we've spoken about so often are the ones that I think we need to make sure we apply to others as we would want them to apply to ourselves."