Sturgeon seeks MSPs’ backing over vaccine passport plans

Nicola Sturgeon has announced the likely introduction of vaccine passports as Covid cases surge in Scotland.

If the Scottish Government’s plans are

approved by parliament, coronavirus vaccine passports would be

required in nightclubs and at large events from the end of this month.

In an update to parliament yesterday, the first minister said that from onwards, people can download a code on their phones to show they have received both doses of the vaccine.

Proof of this will be required for access to nightclubs and events with large audiences.

Ms Sturgeon said: “We do not currently consider it appropriate to introduce certification for the hospitality industry as a whole, and hope that it will not be necessary to do so. However, we will keep that under review.

“We are also very aware of the need to take account of people who – for good reason – cannot get fully vaccinated with both doses of the vaccine. So, for example, we envisage that children and people with particular medical conditions would be exempt.”

A debate will take place in parliament next week to approve the plans.

Places you would need a vaccine passport include:

Nightclubs and adult entertainment venues;

Unseated outdoor live events with more than 4,000 people in the audience;

Unseated indoor live events with more than 500 people in the audience;

Any event, of any nature, which has more than 10,000 people in attendance.

The first minister added: “Many of the events and venues that are covered by the certification scheme are important – they matter to our economy and to our cultural and social life. That’s why we want to enable them to stay open safely.

“But they are not essential services. And the nature of them, which involves bringing many people together in relatively small areas, does mean that, despite their very best efforts, they can contribute significantly to the spread of the virus.

“By ensuring that people entering these settings are fully vaccinated, we would be taking a proportionate step to help make these settings safer for everyone attending and, by extension, for all of us.”

“The introduction of vaccine certificates – even in the fairly limited circumstances I have set out – is a significant move and not one we would ever take lightly.

“That is why I believe it should have parliamentary approval in advance.”

Ms Sturgeon said the Delta variants had changed the pandemic in a very challenging way just as the vaccine had changed things positively.

“I am hopeful we can turn the corner,” she said, but warned the next few days would be crucial.

Ms Sturgeon stressed the importance of vaccination as part of people’s “civic duty”.

She added: “If the recent surge in cases was to continue – if, for instance, we were to see cases continuing to rise to 10,000 or more a day, something I hope won’t happen, but is by no means impossible – that will have serious consequences.

“A lot of people would fall seriously ill.

“Some would die and the NHS would come under even more severe pressure.”

She said it would be “grossly irresponsible” to rule out the reintroduction of restrictions or another lockdown amid the rise in coronavirus cases.

“We know only too well how much harm restrictions cause to businesses, young people’s education and to our overall wellbeing. But if that is to be avoided – as I hope it can be – it will take all of us making a conscious and concerted effort again to comply with all the basic mitigations that we know can slow down transmission.”

Ms Sturgeon urged people to continue working from home, to wash their hands and to rethink their plans to socialise with varied groups of people.

The update came as the latest Covid stats from the Scottish Government showed 6,170 new cases, 699 of which were recorded in Tayside and Fife.

Public health officials say there was a test positivity rate of 11.5% yesterday, down from over 14% on Tuesday.

A further nine deaths linked to Covid were also confirmed, taking the total number of deaths after people tested positive to 8,127.

Pressure on the NHS continued to grow, with another rise in the number of people requiring treatment in hospital.

More than 40 new patients were included in the new figures, with 629 being treated in hospitals across the country.

The government also said 59 people were in intensive care, up five on Tuesday’s figure.

Nearly half of all 16 and 17-year-olds have also received the first dose of the vaccine, Nicola Sturgeon confirmed.

“We are very aware of the need to take account of people who cannot get fully vaccinated

DRASTIC MOVE: First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she was concerned a “lot of people would fall seriously ill” so the plan for vaccine certification, which would involve people downloading a code on their phones, was a “proportionate step”.