Boris Johnson set for showdown with MPs after backing ‘Covid passports’

Boris Johnson was heading for a showdown with his own MPs on Monday after throwing his weight behind domestic “Covid passports”, with his government saying it was “right” to provide a way for people to prove their virus status and reassure businesses.

The move came as the prime minister confirmed that England would move to step two of the “road map” for lifting the lockdown on April 12, when outdoor pubs, non-essential shops, hairdressers and indoor gyms will be among premises that can reopen.

Although Johnson was upbeat about progress in containing the virus, government scientists have warned that a resurgence in hospitalisations and deaths is “highly likely” once all legal restrictions on mixing have been removed in June.

Johnson remained confident that the timetable for lifting the lockdown was on track, telling a Downing Street press conference there was “nothing in the present data that makes us think we will have to deviate from that road map”.

He warned that the reopening of the economy would throw up some stark ethical choices, notably on whether people should have to provide proof in certain circumstances of their Covid-19 status after the scheduled lifting of remaining lockdown rules on June 21.

More than 70 MPs last week vowed to oppose the introduction of such certificates for domestic use, including 41 Tories, arguing that they would be “divisive and discriminatory”. The opposition Labour party is considering its position.

The government said in an interim statement on its review of Covid-19 certification: “Introducing a ban on this would in most cases be an unjustified intrusion on how businesses choose to make their premises safe.”

Public services, public transport and essential shops were given as examples of where the state would ensure that Covid-19 certificates would never have to be shown to ensure “access for all”.

A review, led by Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove, will continue to look at “equity and ethical concerns” but the interim report released on Monday confirmed businesses could ask for Covid-status proof, provided they observed equalities laws.

The review said certificates could help reopen sports events, theatres and nightclubs. Trial events, including the football FA Cup final next month, are planned.

It concluded that Covid-19 certificates were likely to be a fact of life until the pandemic receded, and therefore it was right for the government to develop a usable system to enable foreign travel as well as access to certain UK venues.

The certificate is expected to be based on the NHS app, which will record vaccinations, test results and immunity, based on whether a person has suffered from the virus.

Mark Harper, chair of the lockdown-sceptic Tory Covid Recovery Group, said MPs had to be given a vote on “domestic vaccine passports”.

“Whether the state legislates for it, recommends it or simply allows it, Covid status certification will lead to a two-tier Britain,” he said. “These issues need debating thoroughly and carefully before we allow them to affect the lives of our constituents.”

Johnson, whose cabinet signed off the plan on Monday, also provided a cautious update on plans to reopen foreign travel. His review said the government “hopes people will be able to travel to and from the UK to take a summer holiday this year but it is too soon to say what is possible”.

A traffic-light system will be introduced for foreign destinations, grading them on their record on vaccines, the prevalence of new variants and infection rates.

Travellers to countries on the “green list” will require no isolation upon return to England, although pre-departure and post-arrival tests will still be required. Countries on amber and red lists will require different levels of isolation upon return.

Non-essential foreign travel is banned until May 17, step three of the road map, and ministers will not announce which countries are deemed safest for overseas trips until nearer that date. For now, the advice remains not to book a foreign holiday “until the picture is clearer”.

Meanwhile, government scientists warned that in spite of the success of the UK’s vaccination programme, with more than 31.5m people having received their first dose, risks remained of a resurgence of the disease after June 21.

In some “pessimistic but plausible” scenarios, as many people would be in hospital with the disease in August and September as during the last peak in January, they said.

The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies released a new set of epidemiological models on Monday afternoon, which were completed last week.

Although the scientists emphasised that “the scale, shape, and timing of any resurgence remain highly uncertain”, all the modelling showed some increase in cases, hospitalisations and deaths, because the greatly increased transmission resulting from social mixing would outweigh the protective effect of vaccination.

Scientists were “quite sanguine” about the effect of step two of unlocking on April 12, said a government adviser, but more worried about the consequences of steps three and four.

“We will be watching the ONS [Office for National Statistics] infection data like hawks,” the adviser said.

John Holland-Kaye, chief executive of Heathrow, welcomed the traffic light framework for foreign travel but added it was “disappointing” that Johnson had not given more certainty over what travel would be allowed and when.

Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer & Pub Association, said it was crucial that the government stuck to its road map with people allowed back inside pubs in May and all restrictions lifted in June.

“We continue to have deep concerns over the government’s proposals around vaccine passports and changes to guidelines on how pubs will operate once they reopen,” she said.