NICOLA Sturgeon has accused the UK Government of having a "hissy fit" over the publication of vaccine supply details. 

The First Minister said ministers down south were "briefing and spinning misleading figures on supply".

It comes after the Scottish Government removed its vaccine rollout plan from its website last week.

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The UK Government had raised concerns the document contained sensitive details of how many doses the UK is receiving. 

A source was quoted as saying: "The reason we didn't want to publish these figures was because everyone in the world wants these vaccines.

"If other countries see how much we are getting, they are likely to put pressure on the drug firms to give them some of our allocation."

Ms Sturgeon addressed the issue while updating MSPs in Holyrood.

Scottish Conservative Holyrood leader Ruth Davidson said Scotland had taken receipt of 700,000 vaccine doses, but 400,000 are "sitting as yet undelivered".

Ms Sturgeon said: "On supplies – and I want to be quite blunt, perhaps brutally so here – we last week published detailed estimates of supply now and well into the future. 

"We put that out in a document that went on the web and was circulated.

"I hope I'm not about to use unparliamentary language, Presiding Officer, but the UK Government had something of what I can only describe as a hissy fit about us doing that. 

"So we agreed in consultation with them to take away the publication of those supply figures. 

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"They don't want us to be open about supply for reasons of commercial confidentiality. 

"And while I don't necessarily entirely agree with the reasoning behind that, we have agreed with their request. 

"And yet what we have is the UK Government briefing and spinning misleading figures on supply. 

"So they have to be clear about which approach they want us to take."

The Tories accused Ms Sturgeon of deflecting and dodging questions.

Speaking afterwards, Ms Davidson said: "Hundreds of thousands of doses are at the SNP Government’s disposal. GPs across Scotland and the BMA are saying the vaccines are not reaching them quickly enough.

"Instead of answering these serious questions from vulnerable patients, medical leaders and GPs, Nicola Sturgeon decided to go on a bizarre rant at the UK Government, accusing them of a 'hissy fit' over a serious breach by the SNP - this was clearly intended to draw attention away from her government's own failings on the vaccine rollout and had more than a whiff of desperation about it."

She added: "Nobody is impressed by the First Minister playing politics and trying to deflect on such a serious issue."