Bring in vaccine passports now to save businesses, MP says
Vaccine passports must be brought in urgently to save businesses at risk due to the extension of Covid restrictions, an MP has said.
John Spellar said he was in "fear for the future" of many firms after Boris Johnson announced 'freedom day' would be delayed until at least July 19 due to rising Covid cases.
The decision means that limits on numbers for sports events, pubs and cinemas will remain in place, nightclubs will stay closed and people will be encouraged to keep up social distancing and working from home.
Mr Spellar, the Labour MP for Warley has branded the move "absolutely absurd" and warned that the restrictions could end up being extended again due to the Government's failure to manage risk.
He said vaccinated people should be given a blue card allowing them entry into shops and hospitality venues, a scheme which "needn't be unnecessarily cumbersome".
Mr Spellar said: "They should ditch their stubborn, ideological objection to this idea and give people the opportunity to get back to something resembling a normal life.
"If they don’t, then I really fear for the future. As an example, how will lower league football clubs survive for any longer without supporters paying at the turnstiles?
"Fans will right now be deciding whether to buy season tickets. How many will choose not to if there’s still the prospect that they won’t be able to watch their players in the flesh next season?"
Mr Spellar urged ministers to manage the risk that the virus poses, "rather than vainly trying to remove it altogether".
"That means continuing with our hugely successful vaccination programme, continuing to adapt the vaccines where possible to new variants, and the use of vaccine passports to allow those who have been jabbed to get back to normal," he said.
"The Government approach is incoherent. They should change policy or change ministers. It’s time for common sense to get Britain moving again."
