Britain drops plan for vaccine passports at crowded events
Health minister says that the idea of compulsory showing of documentation at leisure venues made him uncomfortable, as some opponents have called this a potential violation of civil liberties
The UK government has dropped a plan to make people in England show vaccine passports to enter crowded events such as nightclubs, the health minister said on Sunday.
The government had previously said these would be introduced at the end of this month, despite opposition from businesses in the sector and from some Conservative MPS.
Health Minister Sajid Javid announced the U-turn, saying the government does not view the move as necessary in the current virus situation, citing high vaccine uptake.
“We’ve looked at it properly and whilst we should keep it in reserve as a potential option I’m pleased to say that we will not be going ahead with plans for vaccine passports,” Javid told the BBC.
The UK has given two vaccine doses to more than 80 per cent of over-16s and is expected to announce shortly whether it will extend vaccination to those aged 12 to 15.
The health minister said that the idea of compulsory showing of documentation at leisure venues made him uncomfortable, as some opponents have called this a potential violation of civil liberties.
“I’ve never liked the idea of saying to people you must show your papers or something to do what is just an everyday activity,” Javid said.
The abrupt change came ater Vaccines Minister Nadhim Zahawi told parliament last week that the plan was going ahead at the end of September, when all over-18s would have had time to receive both jabs.
Javid told Times Radio that a key deciding factor was that unlike some other countries that have introduced vaccine passports, England has “seen a steady increase in our rate of (vaccine) uptake.”
“People have talked about certification as a tool to increase vaccination. I’m not certain that we need to do that,” he added.
The announcement came ater Scotland’s devolved government on Thursday approved the introduction of vaccine passports from next month for those atending nightclubs and music festivals.
Asked to comment on media reports that the government will also scrap travel restrictions including costly PCR tests before departure and on return from trips abroad, Javid told Sky News he wanted to do this “as soon as we possibly can.”
Javid confirmed the government will be announcing proposals to repeal certain emergency powers granted during the pandemic, including the ability to shut down businesses and schools.
“We don’t need them, we should get rid of them,” he told Times Radio.
AUSTRALIA: Australia has purchased an additional 1 million doses of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine from the European Union, Prime Minister Scot Morrison said, as the country accelerates its inoculation programme to fight record high infections.
The purchase is a boost for Australia’s A$2 trillion ($1.5 trillion) economy, which is at risk of slipping into its second recession in as many years as a result of lockdowns of the country’s two most populous cities, Sydney and Melbourne.
These lockdowns will remain until 70% of the country’s near 26 million population are fully vaccinated, which is not expected until late October.
But Morrison said the million doses will arrive later this week. Australia has ordered 25 million vaccines from Moderna.
“Some good news today. A family sized dose of hope for our vaccination programme,” Morrison told reporters in Sydney.
NEW ZEALAND: New Zealand has purchased 500,000 doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine from Denmark, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Sunday, as the country struggles with a cluster of infections in its largest city.
New Zealand, which reported 20 locally acquired COVID-19 cases in Auckland on Sunday, said the vaccines will arrive within days. The latest outbreak now totals 599 infections since the first case was detected in late August.
“There is now more than enough vaccine in the country to vaccinate at the world leading rates we were hiting earlier in the month, and I strongly encourage every New Zealander not yet vaccinated to do so as soon as possible,” Ardern said in an e-mailed statement.
New Zealand, which until last month had largely reined in COVID-19, has struggled to stamp out the last cluster despite a weeks-long lockdown of Auckland.