Covid Scotland: Vaccine passports 'under consideration' for hospitality and leisure sector

He said: "The situation is precarious and unpredictable. If the previous pattern, characterised by waves of infection, is repeated there is a risk that the spread of the virus could - very quickly - increase again during the coming weeks, perhaps over the Christmas period. 

"Starting from the current high level of infection in the community and the intense pressure the NHS is already under as a result, some scenarios for what may happen next are very concerning. 

"We need to avoid the most dangerous of those scenarios."

READ MORE: Covid cases in Scotland's island communities hit record high amid infections surge

Mr Swinney added that there were "reasons to suspect" that case numbers would climb in the coming weeks, including colder weather driving more people to meet up indoors, the influx of international visitors to Glasgow for COP26, and socialising over the festive period. 

He said measures such as wider use of vaccine passports and stricter rules for face coverings could be rolled out to prevent a return to tougher curbs on normal life.

Deputy First Minister John Swinney said the Government was also considering whether tighter rules on the use of facemasks could be required

"We certainly want to avoid the strict lockdowns we've seen before most of us were vaccinated," said Mr Swinney.

"We do not want to repeat the sort of disruption to our daily lives, businesses and the economy that had been required at earlier stages in the pandemic.

"But we do need to take appropriate measures to keep the pandemic under control. 

"It is because we want to avoid more difficult restrictions that we cannot rule out strengthening the baseline measures currently in place as the best way to head off any prospect of future lockdowns...we have been considering for example whether we may need to extend the Covid certification scheme to bring more settings into scope, such as indoor hospitality and leisure settings. 

"Among other possible interventions, we are exploring how we can help improve ventilation, what we could do to increase home working, and whether changes are needed to extend the use of face coverings." 

READ MORE: Overseas travel rules set to be tightened for adults who refuse boosters

Vaccine passports are already required in Scotland for entry into nightclubs and other large events, such as football matches.

Scotland's current Covid measures are due to be reviewed next Tuesday potentially paving the way for certification to be introduced for pubs and restaurants within weeks.

Mr Swinney said options will be discussed with business sectors over the coming days, before a decision is taken. 

Dr Liz Cameron, chief executive of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, called on ministers to "urgently get round the table with businesses to demonstrate the evidence for ramping up restrictions", adding that the plans risk derailing economic growth.

David Lonsdale, director of the Scottish Retail Consortium, said it was "sceptical" about the use of passports in stores, coffee shops and retailers’ restaurants.

"It would have practical and operational challenges, especially with many shops often relying on impulse or ad hoc purchases from customers," said Mr Lonsdale. 

In Wales - the only other part of the UK to have implemented a vaccine passport scheme so far - the government wants to extend them to cinemas and theatres from November 15.

However, the Welsh scheme allows people to show proof of a negative test or recent recovery from infection as an alternative to double vaccination. 

As of November 7, Scotland was detecting an average of just over 2,700 infections per day - up from around 2,500 during October.

However, Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross said tightening restrictions was "the wrong approach" and called for vaccinations to be the "our main weapon against the virus". 

Mr Ross said: “John Swinney is creating uncertainty with these vague warnings. He talked up the prospect of expanding restrictions on businesses without providing the necessary details about who it might impact or when.

“The SNP Government doesn’t know if their vaccine passport scheme is working, so why are they looking at expanding it? It’s a mind-boggling way to make policy. They’re inventing it on the hoof.

“They’re drip-feeding hints that they might expand the scheme without having the decency to inform the businesses that could be on the cusp of being hit by added costs and extra hassle."

Scottish Labour's finance spokesperson Daniel Johnson said the Deputy FM's announcement will have left many hospitality businesses "feeling very worried". 

“It’s disappointing to see the Deputy First Minister unwilling to set out the scope, timeline and evidence base for any expansion to the Covid passport scheme," said Mr Johnson. 

READ MORE: Missing vaccine passport leaves fully vaccinated Falkirk chemist £400 out of pocket

It comes after figures last week revealed that 42,000 people in Scotland have reported errors in their vaccination records since the status certificate system went live via NHS Inform in July, initially to enable people to obtain proof of vaccination for travel. 

The Herald has previously reported how the helpline has been inundated with people complaining about incorrect details - including fully vaccinated individuals showing only one dose in their record, or people vaccinated in other parts of the UK but now resident in Scotland being unable to obtain their certificate at all. 

Germany, France, Portugal and Italy all have some form of vaccine passport system in place. Portugal also has the world's highest vaccination rate, with over 87% of its total population fully vaccinated

However, a number of experts have previously backed extending vaccine passports to a wider range of settings. 

Professor Devi Sridhar, chair of global public health at Edinburgh University and an advisor on Covid-19 to the Scottish Government, warned last week that there was "not much room to manoeuvre" already in the NHS and by December "it may not be there in the way we want it to be if we don't put in protections". 

Prof Sridhar added: "If we look at New York City, France, Italy, Germany, they're much stricter on indoor venues. 

"If you go to a coffee shop in Germany and you sit outside, they don't ask you for any proof of anything. 

"But if you want to go inside, you need to show proof of a negative test in the past 24 hours or a double vaccination. 

"This is the way they've kept their indoor settings safer."

Nonetheless, Germany has seen its Covid rate triple since mid-October - although it still remains around 40 per cent lower than the UK rate.

In France and Italy cases have remained low.

Booster and third dose uptake by age group (*not everyone under 50 is eligible)

Mr Swinney added that there is currently no evidence of a surge in cases linked to COP26, with just one in a 1000 lateral flow tests carried out by passholders attending the summit's Blue Zone last week returning a positive result by November 5.

However, he said there "remains a risk that COP26 could increase the spread of the virus" and the Scottish Government "continue to monitor the situation carefully".

Mr Swinney added that ministers are also looking at ways to accelerate uptake of booster and third dose Covid vaccinations, including by running additional clinics "particularly at evenings and weekends". 

Appointment letters are now being sent out to adults aged 60-69 and those with underlying health conditions, said Mr Swinney, with the self-booking portal for over-50s, unpaid carers, and household contacts of the immunosuppressed set to go live from mid-November with a target of administering boosters to all over 50s "by early next year".