Union in the East backs implementation of Covid passes
Parliament will be voting on the various measures detailed in the Government's Covid-19 plan B today
As Parliament gets ready to vote on the Government's Covid-19 plan B, including the requirement for Covid passes to enter large venues, Unite the Union have signalled that it is a measure they support.
If it is agreed in Parliament, Covid passes will become mandatory to enter nightclubs, indoor unseated venues with a capacity of 500 people or over, unseated outdoor venues with more than 4,000 people and any venue with a capacity over 10,000 people.
Mark Robinson is the regional coordinator at Unite the Union for East England. He says the measure will keep both staff and customers at these venues safe as well as ensure they stay open.
"We understand that it is important to ensure that the hospitality industry is not spreading it (the virus) about. It is also vital to look after people, be it the people who work in these places or the customers we serve."
He explains that Covid passes are a complicated measure and that the right infrastructure should be in place when they are implemented.
"There will be areas or pockets of the population where the passes will be difficult to get because the people may not have smartphones or be able to download it themselves" he says, before adding that these issues need to be addressed by the Government before the requirement comes in.
Today's vote in Parliament is going to be tricky for the Government with a number of Tory MPs opposed to the idea of vaccine passports, including Clacton MP Giles Watling and Ipswich MP Tom Hunt.
If it is approved, they will become mandatory for entry at the venues mentioned from Wednesday, 15th December.