UK Government rules out Vaccine Certification for events as Scottish Government wins key vote to introduce them

14th September 2021

Scotland looks as if will be going it alone when Vaccine Certificates become necessary to allow entry to some events and venues from 1st October after the Scottish Parliament voted in favour of the measure, but the UK Government ruled it out for England. The Welsh Government and the Northern Ireland Executive do not have any current plans to introduce them.

The Certificates will be required for entry to what the Scottish Government describes as ‘higher risk settings’: nightclubs and analogous venues; sexual entertainment venues; live indoor, unseated events with 500+ in the audience; live events that are outdoors and unseated with 4,000+ in the audience and all events with a 10,000+ audience.

Commenting on the change, Alan Mitchell, Chief Executive of Fife Chamber of Commerce, said: “This measure will add costs and could deter customers in sectors that have been amongst the hardest hit by lockdowns. Detail on how the scheme will operate, what venues will be included, how it will be enforced and how long it may remain in force are sadly lacking. No evidence or modelling was presented to demonstrate the impact this measure will have on Covid transmission rates, and no economic impact assessment or analysis of its wider health and societal impacts were published either.

“Throughout the pandemic, businesses in Fife have worked hard to keep their clients, customers and employees safe. Even today many are going beyond what is legally required of them to slow transmission and keep case numbers down because they understand that every part of society has to play its part in fighting covid. But with vaccinations making the relationship between covid harm and covid suppression harm so finely balanced now, we should all reasonably expect that any new covid suppression measures have been properly thought through and introduced with more than a hope that they will work. That seems far from clear on this occasion.”

Our premier partners...