Ministers are planning to use vaccine passports as a short-term ‘bridge to freedom’ before full herd immunity is achieved in the autumn, The Mail on Sunday understands.
Under the plans, all Covid-related restrictions would be relaxed as planned under Boris Johnson’s roadmap on June 21 – but with the passports allowing the return of mass public gatherings in the summer.
This would include the return of capacity crowds for the start of the Premier League season in August.
The ‘Covid status certificates’, which would show whether the bearer had recently tested negative for the disease or had antibodies either through a vaccination or past infection, would be discontinued when a large enough proportion of the community has immunity to coronavirus to halt its spread.