UK Cabinet Minister Michael Gove denied on Tuesday that the government was planning to issue so-called immunity passports that would see only people that have been vaccinated against COVID-19 allowed in public places like cinemas and sporting events
LONDON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 01st December, 2020) UK Cabinet Minister Michael Gove denied on Tuesday that the government was planning to issue so-called immunity passports that would see only people that have been vaccinated against COVID-19 allowed in public places like cinemas and sporting events.
The question was raised after newly-appointed vaccine minister Nadhim Zahawi said on Monday that although the COVID-19 vaccine would not be compulsory in the United Kingdom, the hospitality sector and other businesses might ask people for proof that they have been immunized before allowing them in.
"No, that�s not being planned. I certainly am not planning to issue any vaccine passports and I don't know anyone else in government who would," Gove told the Sky news broadcaster.
Gove said, however, that the "big challenge" for health authorities will be to persuade "as many people as possible" to have the COVID-19 vaccine, claiming that some of the arguments from the anti-vax brigades were not really based on science and that vaccines undergo a rigorous process to make sure they are safe.
"People in this country have common sense and the overwhelming majority concede that getting vaccinated is not only good for you, it is also good for others. It�s a way of making sure that granny and grandad, mom and dad are safe," he stressed.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday that he hoped the Pfizer/BioNTech and Oxford/AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine candidates that were being assessed by the UK's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency would get the green light for their rollout in the UK before Christmas.
