COVID-19: Scotland to require vaccine passports
for nightclubs and large events, Nicola Sturgeon says
Nicola Sturgeon says that while events covered by the
scheme "matter to our economy, and to our cultural and social life",
they are "not essential services".
Wednesday 1
September 2021 18:11, UK
First
Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon receives the first shot of the Astra
Zeneca vaccine, administered by staff nurse Elaine Anderson, at the NHS Louisa
Jordan vaccine centre in the SSE Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland. Picture date:
Thursday April 15, 2021.
Vaccine
passports will be needed for entry to nightclubs and large-scale events in
Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon has said.
The first
minister told MSPs that the "limited use of vaccine certification"
from later this month could help control the spread of COVID-19 through autumn
and winter.
Numbers of
new infections are 80% higher than last week and five times higher than four
weeks ago, she said, describing the situation as "extremely
concerning".
Rising
hospital admissions also make the situation "fragile and serious",
she added.
The new
rules - if approved by parliament in a vote next week - will cover indoor live
events with more than 500 unseated people, outdoor live events with more than
4,000 unseated, and any event with over 10,000 attendees.
Ms Sturgeon
said that while activities covered by the scheme "matter to our economy,
and to our cultural and social life", they are "not essential
services" and bring "many people together in relatively small
areas".
"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," she said.
Time was
key, she added: "For any decision of this nature to have an impact before
winter, we would have to take and implement it quickly."
Vaccine
passports are not being considered for the hospitality industry as a whole, and
children and adults with certain medical conditions will be exempt.
From
Friday, people in Scotland will be able to download a QR code showing their
vaccine status.
Ms Sturgeon
told parliament: "The Scottish government has made it clear that we do not
believe that vaccination certification should ever be a requirement for any key
services or in settings where people have no choice over attendance - for
example, public transport, education, access to medical services or shops. We
continue to hold to that position."
In England,
there are plans to bring in vaccine passports to enter nightclubs and other
"crowded venues" from the end of September.
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