Covid-19 passport pilots proposed by the UK government as a way out of the blockade

Covid-19 passport pilots proposed by the UK government as a way out of the blockade

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With the reopening of the country, ministers hope that the system of “certification of the status of greed” will allow those who have been vaccinated, had a recent negative or positive test within six months, to return to theaters, football games, cinemas and others events.

Several countries consider some form of Covid-19 status verification a viable way to make it quick and easy for individuals to attend events or flights on board, but critics are concerned that passports could undermine fundamental freedoms and cause discrimination.
The UK pilot, who will be discussed in detail on Monday by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, will test the effectiveness and transmission risks of the government’s reopening plan and begins April 16 at Liverpool’s Hot Water Comedy Club. Other events and locations listed for April are the World Snooker Championship at Sheffield’s Crucible Theater, the FA Cup Semi Final at Wembley Stadium in London and Luna Cinema in Liverpool.

“We have made great strides in recent months with our vaccine program and everyone in the country has made enormous sacrifices to take us to this stage of recovery from covid-19,” Johnson said in a statement on Saturday. “We are doing everything we can to allow our country to reopen so that people can return to the events, trips and other things they love as safely as possible, and these analyzes will play an important role in enabling this to happen.”

The National Health Service is developing paper and digital methods for citizens to prove their Covid-19 status. The government emphasized that passports will not be needed to travel on public transport or enter essential stores.
More than 70 deputies this week joined civil liberties groups like Big Brother Watch to launch a campaign against the proposed use of documents that allow people to access certain domestic locations. Senior politicians like ex-Labor Party leader Jeremy Corbyn and Liberal Democratic leader Ed Davey were signatories to a statement that said vaccine passports are “divisive and discriminatory”.

Davey described passports as “illegal and impractical” in a tweet on Friday.

“Work is underway with clinical and ethical experts to ensure appropriate exemptions for people for whom vaccination is not recommended and repeat testing would be difficult,” the government said in a statement on Saturday.

A tourism minister said on Sunday that certification is “one of the tools” that the government is looking to “help us get back to the things we love”.

“We are very aware and aware of the ethical considerations surrounding vaccination certification,” said Nigel Huddleston to CNN ITN affiliate. “The main objective of analyzing this option is to see how it can allow us to open up, going back to the things we want to do earlier … Many companies tell me that openness is one thing, but what we really need to do is to be able to open profitably and as long as there is social distance, this presents us with real challenges so that we can open again as viable businesses. “

International travel from the UK is still banned until May 17, but after that date the government will implement a “traffic light” system. Travelers arriving from “green” countries will not have to isolate themselves, while those from “red” or “amber” will remain restricted to the mandatory quarantine policies currently in effect.

The American Civil Liberties Union said this week that plans to launch a standardized vaccine passport should take into account social inequalities and privacy rights and anything less is a “no start”. Several technology organizations and companies have already started to develop applications for smartphones and other digital systems to store and verify vaccination information.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed an executive order on Friday banning the use of Covid-19 passports in the state. The order prohibits any government entity from issuing vaccine passports and prevents companies from requiring such documentation.

Robert Iddiols, Kelly Murray, Gregory Lemos and Alaa Elassar contributed to this report.

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