However, the footfall rate is above the UK average decline of 76.9%.

Year on year footfall in Glasgow decreased by 75.5% in January, a worsening of 15.7 percentage point from December. Scottish Shopping Centre footfall decreased by 76.5% in January, less of a decline than the UK average Shopping Centre footfall decline of 78.2%.

Weekly footfall for the four weeks in January was broadly within the same range, with a slightly shallower decline during the last week of the month.

David Lonsdale, director, Scottish Retail Consortium, said: “Footfall nosedived last month, down almost three quarters on the same period a year ago, as shoppers heeded the government’s order for people to stay home. It was the worst month for shop visits since last May, and was witnessed across all retail locations, unsurprising with shoppers really only able to go to pharmacies and food and pet supply stores and with click and collect and food-to-go takeaway curtailed by fresh restrictions from the middle of the month.

“Hopefully government will make clear the route back to re-opening stores soon. Whilst a return to trading is crucial, it will not be a panacea for the industry. Even when we emerge from the current enforced hibernation it is likely that shops will be unable to trade at capacity due to physical distancing and caps on the number of customers in stores.

“That’s why we hope to see a broader recovery plan from government for when stores are permitted to re-open, one which includes short term action to kick-start consumer demand and transactions but which also provides clarity over rates relief for the second half of 2021.”

Andy Sumpter, Retail Consultant EMEA for ShopperTrak, added: “With the first full month of a new national lockdown, January certainly won’t have been the start to the year retailers were hoping for, as once more they had to shut up shop and inevitably footfall plummeted.

“But while it’s easy to let shuttered stores paint a bleak picture for the future of the High Street - with many retailers now having faced almost a full year of store reopenings and closures as waves of covid-19 have ebbed and flowed - it’s important to remember that when retail has reopened from lockdown, demand for in-store shopping has returned each time.

“And while the pandemic may have accelerated ‘Retail Darwinism’, those that have used this time as an opportunity to reset and invest in the operational foundations to meet new demands will be well placed to capitalise on pent-up demand for the in-person shopping experiences we have all been missing, as well as setting themselves up for strong, long-term growth.”