More than 70 members of the UK parliament signaled their opposition to the introduction of a vaccine passport which is being considered by the government in helping to reopen the economy as the country begins to lift the coronavirus restrictions across the country.
The government is reviewing the idea of asking people to show evidence of Covid-19 vaccination to access crowded spaces such as pubs or sports events, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson saying that the certificate is likely to be needed for international travel.
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The Daily Telegraph newspaper reported on Saturday that the Covid passport trial would begin within a few weeks during the pilot at the main sports events and maybe in a music award ceremony scheduled in the next two months to assess the impact. On Friday, Johnson said that the combination of immunity factors – if people suffer from disease, vaccination, or have a Covid-19 test – will provide business confidence.
“So the three things work together well, I think, useful for us as we go ahead,” Johnson said. But there are increased concerns from several in their own conservative party, as well as opposition parliamentarians and civil rights groups, about the prospect of the vaccine certificate.
“We oppose the use of Covid status certification that is divisive and discriminatory to reject individual access to public services, business or work,” said a statement signed by a group of more than 70 parliamentarians from all political spectrum.
Under the “roadmap” planned by the government to curb the spread of the pandemic, the pubs will be permitted to serve the outdoor consumers later this month, with further easing of restrictions in mid-May before all the measures are lifted by the end of June.
Johnson suggested last month that some pubs might need customers to produce vaccine certificates. Oliver Dowden, the Culture Minister meanwhile, said that the certificate could help make more people become theaters.
No decision has been made so far, and Johnson has instructed Senior Minister Michael Gove to review the possibility of the role of the certificate, saying there are deep and complex ethical problems to explore. Gove will report immediately. More than 31 million Britons have received their first vaccine dose in the fastest inoculation program in Europe.
