Covid-19 vaccine passport: FOI release

Information requested

1. Can you confirm: will the word “vaccine” be used on this document. Further will it be officially called and titled a covid or a vaccine passport?

2. A statement was made by Nadhim Zahawi MP in the House of Commons in relation to vaccine passports and the fact that the experimental “vaccine” trial required to have some of the people vaccinated [approx. 40%] be given a placebo injection however the Westminster government would grant all those people vaccine passports. His actual words were: “...constituents can rest assured that those who are in clinical trials, including the Novavax trial, will have their data on the NHS covid app as being fully vaccinated, whether they are receiving the placebo or the vaccine, across all trials. That is happening”

Would the Scottish ministers confirm if that is the case here in Scotland, that there will in fact actually be vaccinated people and unvaccinated people issued with a vaccination passport?

3. Is there a proportionate double blind placebo regime in place for all Scottish school children who will be subjected to this toxic injection?

4. Will school children be issued with these passports.

5. Can the ministers reveal the name of the firm providing the passport and the total cost.

Response

1. Under Section 25(1) of FOISA, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you.

It may be helpful to note, the NHS Inform website sets out that the name of the:

• app is ‘NHS Scotland Covid Status’
• downloadable PDF, available via the NHS Inform website, or the letter that can be posted to you if you telephone the COVID Status Helpline on 0808 196 8565, is ‘vaccination status’.

Further information about these are also available on the NHS Inform website -
https://www.nhsinform.scot/nhs-scotland-covid-status/

The Scottish Government have also published guidance available through the following link on the Coronavirus (COVID-19): vaccine certification scheme. https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronaviruscovid-
19-vaccine-certification-scheme-information-for-customers/

2. Attached is a letter from the Deputy First Minister to the Convener of the Covid19 Recovery Committee at the Scottish Parliament. This letter confirms how the Scottish Government are supporting individuals who have been part of a clinical trial.

2b . Under Section 25(1) of FOISA, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you.

The Coronavirus (COVID-19): vaccine certification scheme – information for businesses and event organisers published on 28 September 2021 provides a summary of how the vaccine certification scheme operates and sets out what venues, businesses and event organisers need to do. I have included an extract from this below for your convenience.

This guidance explains how the scheme works and provides guidance on what premises and event organisers need to do to operate a reasonable system for checking that individuals on their premises are fully vaccinated or exempt.

More information is available via the following link;
https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-vaccine-certification-scheme-businesses-eventorganisers/pages/overview/

3. All 12 to 15-year-olds in Scotland are being offered a single dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. This vaccine has been approved by the UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), based on a rigorous review of data on safety, quality and effectiveness for this age group.

This includes randomised, placebo-controlled clinical trials conducted by Pfizer, in which over 2,000 children aged 12 to 15 years were studied. No new side effects were identified and the safety data in children was comparable with that seen in young adults.

Given, then, that the vaccine being offered to 12 to 15-year-olds in Scotland has already passed clinical trials, everyone in this age group who comes forward for vaccination, as with all age groups, will be given a real dose of the vaccine and not a placebo.

4. Under Section 25(1) of FOISA, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you.

The Health Protection (Coronavirus) (Requirements) (Scotland) Amendment (No. 2) Regulations 2021 (https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ssi/2021/349/contents/made), were published on 30 September 2021. These regulations are made using the power conferred by paragraph 1(1) of schedule 19 of the Coronavirus Act 2020 (https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2020/7/contents) and all other powers enabling them to do so. These regulations also interact with other relevant legislation in this specific case with The Health Protection (Coronavirus) (Requirements) (Scotland) Regulations 2021 - https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ssi/2021/277/contents.

While the Scottish Government cannot provide legal advice on these regulations, I can confirm that all people under 18 years are exempt from the scheme.

5. The firm Netcompany has been contracted to deliver the Covid Vaccination Certification Scheme. The value of this contract is £600,000.

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FOI202100240769 - Information released

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