Clubs to ask for vaccine passports after Govt accused of introducing them 'by stealth'

30 July 2021, 11:12 | Updated: 30 July 2021, 13:25

The government has been accused of creating covid app passports 'by stealth'. Picture: Alamy

By Asher McShane

Vaccine passports will be needed for 'close contact things' like going clubbing but not for going to shops or to the pub, the Transport Secretary has said.

Grant Shapps said today: "We won't go as far as requiring it to enter a shop or the pub, we will for very close contact things like going to nightclubs.

"I think there is precious little reason not to be vaccinated, every good reason to be vaccinated. Why wouldn't we want to save lives? It's just obvious to me."

The Leader of the Liberal Democrats, Ed Davey MP, has called on the Prime Minister to recall Parliament to debate Covid ID cards.

In a letter to Boris Johnson, Mr Davey accused the Prime Minister of introducing "Covid ID cards onto the nation’s phones by stealth, without even a whisper from Ministers or any scrutiny in Parliament".

He said the PM is "wasting money", giving "no clear guidance for businesses" and "bringing unnecessary anxiety to young people."

"It is deeply unsettling to see you and your government committing to vaccine passports by stealth," he wrote.

"This goes against all our country’s traditions and is utterly deceitful. Parliament must be recalled immediately.

"How businesses or indeed even churches will be expected to decide who can or cannot pass through their doors has not been made clear. This is a recipe for chaos and dissent on many doorsteps throughout England."

He went on to say "it would be a grotesque misuse of government diktat to introduce ID cards without any scrutiny, let alone a vote of MPs."

Some club nights are already demanding to be shown the NHS app as proof people have been fully vaccinated, before they are allowed entry.

Yesterday it emerged the wording on the app has been amended to now include a “domestic” section which states: “You may need to show your NHS Covid Pass at places that have chosen to use the service”.

The Government is set to make use of the app mandatory for some settings including nightclubs and large public events in the autumn, as officials prepare for the threat of a fourth Covid wave.