THE MANAGING director of a company which operates across the Scottish and English border has called for consistency in the covid-19 rules between the two countries.

Eddie Black, who runs the Eco Group, a solutions company based in Annan, Dumfries & Galloway, and another business near Cockermouth, says traders face heavy challenges operating under different coronavirus regulation regimes in different parts of the UK.

The call comes as England faces a national lockdown until at least December 2 and Dumfries & Galloway remains in tier two of the Scottish Government's covid-19 restrictions framework.

Current Holyrood Government guidance is that people should avoid unnecessary travel between Scotland and England.

But Eddie, whose company operates throughout the UK, said: “We are across the border every day of the week, 24 hours a day, and we also have people deployed throughout the UK.

"Manufacturing and construction are still ongoing and we operate in these industries so we have to go to work.

“If the same rules applied across the UK, at least there would be clarity and consistency.

"When you live and work on the border, and there are different rules, you could be breaking the rules on one side or the other.”

Eco, which employs more than 50 staff, operates across a range of sectors to deliver multiple products and services for commercial, industrial, public sector and residential customers.

The company has been praised for its rapid response to support the health sector during the pandemic, including delivering more than one million items of PPE to care homes across the UK.

It has also continued to work on completing its own state-of-the-art 3,000-square-metre headquarters in Annan, due to open in early 2021.

As well as its base in Annan, Eco owns Ghyll House Upholstery and Design, which is based at Mealsgate, near Cockermouth.

This week Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she appreciated the difficulties that businesses faced but insisted the Scottish Government was taking a targeted and proportionate approach.

Today (Friday) 11 council areas across Scotland will into level four restrictions

These include East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Glasgow, Renfrewshire and West Dunbartonshire, North and South Lanarkshire, East and South Ayrshire, Stirling and West Lothian.

The restrictions mean non-essential shops, pubs, restaurants and gyms will close, until December 11.