Not sure its a done deal?19 Feb 2021 16:30
Telegraph 5 mins ago
The prospect of summer holidays this year is becoming more "positive" as experts say it would be "feasible" to set up a vaccine passport system for international travel.
"It’s looking increasingly positive on summer holidays. Once the vaccination passport system is set up it should be straightforward. That won’t be easy, but we can see the way ahead," a Whitehall source told The Times.
A number of countries are working on vaccine certificates and the Greek tourism minister has said his Government is in "preliminary discussions" with UK ministers over a potential travel agreement for vaccinated Britons.
However, scientists said today that a lack of set international standards for vaccine passports mean that they cannot be introduced yet.
"An effective vaccine passport system that would allow the return to pre-Covid-19 activities, including travel, without compromising personal or public health, must meet a set of demanding criteria – but it is feasible," said Professor Christopher Dye, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Oxford and one of the lead authors of a report published on Friday by the Royal Society.
Scientists also said that more information is required on how effective vaccines are in preventing transmission, and the duration of protective immunity they provide, in order to establish how long a passport might be valid.