John Swinney, the SNP Deputy First Minister, has admitted that the Scottish Government is considering widening the use of its vaccine passport scheme, so that it encompasses more leisure venues including pubs, cafes, cinemas and theatres in an attempt to thwart a Christmas surge in Covid cases. At the moment, only those wishing to enter a nightclub or large venue need to provide proof that they are double vaccinated. The Telegraph has the story.
Swinney also said ministers were looking at extending the use of face masks and clamping down on workers heading back to the office, ahead of a formal review of restrictions that will be unveiled next week.
In the clearest signal yet that the Scottish Government will introduce a winter clampdown, he told MSPs that the options would be discussed with business leaders in the coming days.
Swinney argued that tightening up such “baseline protective measures” was the best way to “head off any prospect of future lockdowns”.
Although he admitted that the number of people hospitalised with Covid had declined by almost 20% over the past week, he argued previous trends suggested “the spread of the virus could, very quickly, increase again during the coming weeks, perhaps over the Christmas period”.
But Paul Waterson, Spokesman for the Scottish Licenced Trade Association, said vaccine passports could spell the “death knell” for lucrative Christmas parties. Many pubs have been relying on them for a boost to their incomes after more than a year of turmoil.
Dr. Liz Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, warned that extending vaccine passports would be a “massive backwards step” at a “pivotal moment” in the country’s Covid recovery. Leon Thompson, Executive Director of the trade body UKHospitality Scotland, said: “The extension of this poorly conceived and badly executed policy has the potential to destroy many businesses that are already struggling.”
Douglas Ross, the Scottish Tory leader, highlighted the Deputy First Minister’s testimony to a Holyrood inquiry last week, in which he admitted there was no evidence to show vaccine passports had reduced the spread of Covid.
Mr Swinney argued it was impossible to prove a specific restriction caused a decline in Covid rates but Ross said: “It’s a mind-boggling way to make policy. They’re inventing it on the hoof.”
The Deputy First Minister disclosed that he and his colleagues were considering whether to allow people who have not been double vaccinated to access affected premises if they instead provide proof of a negative test.
But he was challenged over how premises such as cafes would be expected to enforce a vaccine passport scheme when they do not have staff at their entrances.
Since the start of October, adults have had to prove they are double vaccinated to enter nightclubs and other late-night venues with music and dancing, or attend large events such as football matches and concerts.
Worth reading in full.
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If they want to avoid a ‘surge’ in ‘cases’, then they need to stop mass testing using an unreliable assessment tool.
They don’t though. They want increased irrelevant numbers.
Although they don’t even need them any more, given that the Nazionalists are revealing their true goal despite the irrelevant numbers dropping.
If only, it was, just about a virus.
Zackly – stop testing and this nonsense would just disappear – like it would have been nothing but a bad flu season if it had not been sensationalised by china, the lame stream media and social media… the world has gone daft and I’m glad I’m approaching my twilight years…
Swinney seems to accuse his opposition of making up policy on the hoof… you couldn’t make it up.
They continue to push their test of the population.
Will we accept bioIDs and mandated medical procedures?
That is the question of our time.
I wont be. Both on Principle and on the disbenefit the prophylactic-ish injection would give to me having had and recovered from covid (no-symptoms, what a battle I had) and considering I’m a male of 27 who wants to have children. More on principle though.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJlDRhlwT6k
Doshi says the latest data says no prophylactic benefit from the jabs either!
There doesn’t need to be. It’s all working like a charm just as it is.
“We” already have.
“We” have accepted them in nightclubs, “we” have accepted them at sportsball stadia.
Sadly, we here who can see where this is leading are in a minority.
Mumsnet will welcome the tyranny. Norf FC will grumble about it, but will show their vaxxports, because you have to support the Reds, don’tchya?
I greatly fear that the war is already over, and our masters are just in the mopping up phase.
Of course none of us on here saw this coming did we?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wEolSjlcqng
“Genetically, paedophiles have more genes in common with crabs than they do with you and me. Now that is scientific fact. There’s no real evidence for it, but it is scientific fact.”
There was no evidence to show vaccine passports had reduced the spread of Covid but it’s scientific fact.
we need to show our opposition to all that is going on. At the moment the herd is following blindly what the govt tells them because they do not see an alternative. The 10% rule shows that when a minority of 10% show determined opposition the herd take notice and become open to changing their minds. All we need to do is show ourselves. Here’s how: https://paul007edwards.wixsite.com/home/post/influencing-people-on-the-street
Presumably we all saw this coming. And we see that it will come to England as well.
The “virus” was invented to require the “vaccines”.
The “vaccines” were created to justify the “vaccine passports”.
The social credit score apps are the goal, and they always have been.
They will never go away, they will always spread, and the compliance required to retain your conditional privileges will always escalate. Boosters, then carbon credits, then rightthink on social media.
Show your digital papers to anyone, anywhere, for any reason, and you will be a serf forever.
Your digital ID will be linked to EVERYTHING you do and your social credit score adjusted
Bingo. The threatened Online Crimethink Bill will will mandate the use of the social credit score apps as ID.
Of course, that was always the plan!
It’s awful to see it coming, but have no way to stop it other than personal refusal, and trying to persuade our friends and family without coming across as a “conspiracy theorist” (i.e. 5 minutes ahead of reality).
I’d actually be happier being ignorant, but you can’t unsee what you’ve foreseen.
Yet another 100% goldplated proof that the lunatics have taken over the asylum.Taffy and Jock really have lost it.
If you imagine that this isn’t coming to England once the Celtic Fringe has trialled it, then I wish you well in living in happy denial for just a little longer.
Lockstep!!!
Off licences and supermarkets should do well out of this.
Until they’re included in the QR net…
There would be zero reason to visit Scotland if this happens.
These nationalists are commie bonkers and it is amazing their populations still stand for this nonsense, in many case openly support it.
Unfortunately I have 2 daughters in Scotland and bought a small property there a few years ago. The way things are going I will probably have my property seized as one of those evil unvaxxed. I would never set foot in the place again if I didn’t have these commitments. Having said that I live in Belgium where I am already barred from almost everything. This thing seems to have an unstoppable momentum and hardly anyone seems to have their foresight to see where this is really going.
It’s only been a few days since Swinney admitted there wasn’t any proof that vaccine passports actually brought down cases (mainly because it hasn’t).
Nicola Sturgeon was more than happy to allow COP26 elites to dodge needing vaccine passports or masks while attending the conference. She even encouraged Glaswegians fo open their doors to delegates. And now, the non-elite citizens will be told to wear masks in even more places, and reveal private medical info to more people, just because the idea that giving Scottish people any sort of freedom back probably gives them nightmares.
A massive shame, therefore, that very few people are actively standing up to this. They’d rather keep the SNP in for the promised chimera of another independence referendum than try to overthrow them for their increasing grab on our private lives. I’m Scottish and, until more widespread opposition is formed, we don’t deserve any pity or sympathy.
The talk of another independence referendum has been all hot air. Also, if all of this keeps going in the direction in which it is currently headed I suspect that enough voters may be disillusioned enough to reject the SNP. Regrettably that didn’t happen in May this year but as the economy starts to tank enough may wake up to what’s going on.
What, CROCK26 about finished then?
Refuse the vaccine passport and use cash wherever possible. And of course, non-compliance should be de rigueur from now on…
I never saw that one coming, did you?
LOL
Will all the sheep stay in the herd?
They are so kind to us. Are they still letting us leave our homes without a vaccine passport? Oh, what it is to live in a free country!
The Scottish Covid strategy – when in a hole keep digging.
Hahahahaha, told you so, slow mission creep!
by design
As right wingers have been saying since, like, forever: Give the government power and they will only use it to gain even more power.
(And before anyone tries telling me that right wingers are nazis, I first want you to really think about where on the left-right political spectrum you adhere to can you fit anti-government libertarians.)
Nazi Germany was socialist !
National Socialism is is Marxism without Jewishness
That’ll be the Scottish pubs fecked then, if that lot goes ahead. Geez wept, it’s stunning; absolutely stunning. Nightclubs have already started refusing to ask for pissports, so hey, let’s extend it to the pubs. Death by slow poison.
They do believe they’ve won….but…life has a habit of springing unexpected surprises. Don’t give up yet.
Half-baked plan to control the masses gets extended. Colour me surprised.
They are scottish and desreve it for putting up with that useless little ginger thing
Our healthcare system is about to experience a tsunami! Potential side effects of jabs include chronic inflammation, because the vaccine continuously stimulates the immune system to produce antibodies. Other concerns include the possible integration of plasmid DNA into the body’s host genome, resulting in mutations, problems with DNA replication, triggering of autoimmune responses, and activation of cancer-causing genes. Alternative COVID cures EXIST. Ivermectin is one of them. While Ivermectin is very effective curing COVID symptoms, it has also been shown to eliminate certain cancers. Do not get the poison jab. Get your Ivermectin today while you still can! https://ivmpharmacy.com
People would have to be naive if they assumed that the imposition of vaccine passports for large venues only is where it would end. This was clearly an attempt to get one authoritarian foot in the door – once you start with one sector it inevitably follows that other venues would be enveloped in this insidious mission creep.
Why is Scotland setting itself up to further ignore all the Covid scientific data and further damage it’s fragile economy. Has Scotland completely lost its mind? Or have they rec’d a large amt of cash, so it won’t really affect their bottom line?
The first. The country demonstrated that when it first voted to install the SNP.
Here in Wales, Drip Drakeford and his labour government mandated Covid Passes for large venues and gatherings. Within weeks they have now added (from 15th Nov) cinemas and theatres of any size.
I have written to my Member of the Senedd asking how many more weeks until they add cafes, pubs and “inessential” shops. My guess is early to mid December.
And, of course, mask mandates back again in pubs and hospitality – mask mandate was never dropped for retail and transport.
”Christmas surge” my foot. Since ‘they’ quite openly announced back in September 2020 that ‘covid’ figures would henceforth be conflated with those of flu, it’s all set up to work to their advantage. In other words, people will be getting flu around Christmas time. Bingo.
Many here will know the significance of the “Yellow Star“.
Don’t know about you, but I’m starting to fade a bit. It’s all getting a bit, is there anyone out there kinda thing? We need one another. Got to stand together. Its nearly Remembrance Day FFS! Do ya know what that means? Fuxxing Hell. My heart is breaking.
I might be old (ish) but I’m what led to me being what my kids and grandkids can count on, even if they don’t know why. And I’m only a shadow of the stuff that made up those proper fuxxing heroes that the Cenotaph is all about.
I’ll remind anyone who needs reminding…
Remembering those who gave their lives and so much more for our freedoms….! Fuxxing hell. The Cnuts, Boris, and his gang will be stood in front of the Cenotaph, pretending to give a shite, wringing their hands, looking grateful for the freedoms won with the blood guts and lives of my and my friend’s Grandparents. Yet they will stand there the Cnuts blatantly removing each and every one of those unbelievably and unimaginably hard-won blood and thunder freedoms we took for granted, one by one by one. This is the sickest of sick jokes played on the human race in human history. And it’s being allowed to happen through sheer can’t be assed to do anythingness from far too many of us. We reap what we sow I’m afraid.
The trouble is, the rest of them might, but I don’t fukxing deserve this bollox.
I’ll fight with every last breath in my body to stop this from happening. For my grandchildren who won’t have a clue what it was like back in those halcyon days, I grew up in. All thanks to those heroic men and women who made it possible, that band of brothers and sisters who made it happen, that this bunch of grabby Demondim Spawn is sticking two fingers up to.
Boris, respectful admirer of Churchill? You’re ‘avin’ a giraffe. That creature along with the rest of his ilk is a self-serving piece of detritus.
There that’s better!