The poll shows that “the public are once again prepared to do what it takes to get out of this pandemic”
A new poll has found that over 60 per cent of Brits support the use of coronavirus vaccine passports for day-to-day visits to places such as pubs.
The study, which was conducted by the leading research company Ipsos MORI, found that 62 per cent of participants believe the potential economic benefits that the passport would provide outweigh any other concerns.
The poll found that just over 20 per cent of respondents opposed the notion of having to show a vaccine passport to gain entry into a pub or restaurant.
However, the use of vaccine passports to allow overseas travel was particularly popular amongst Brits, with 78 per cent of participants in favour of using them for travelling abroad.
A total of 8,352 people were surveyed earlier this month as part of the Ipsos MORI study.
According to the study, Brits supported the idea that the vaccine should be a requirement for people in particular professions. 80 per cent of respondents believe that frontline NHS or care workers should have a vaccine passport in order to carry out their job.
NEW: @IpsosMORI polling finds that 8 in 10 Brits support the idea of a vaccine passport being introduced to allow people to work as a frontline worker in the NHS or care sector pic.twitter.com/6ZyY0WSBXk
— Kelly Beaver MBE (@KellyIpsosUK) March 31, 2021
However, around 20 per cent of participants believe that legal and ethical issues outweigh the possible economic benefits, with many believing that such passports may result in inequalities.
Many hospitality bosses opposed the government’s proposal of Covid-19 vaccine passports.
Kate Nicholls, Chief Executive of UK Hospitality, said: “It’s crucial that visiting the pub and other parts of hospitality should not be subject to mandatory vaccination certification.
“It is simply unworkable, would cause conflict between staff and customers and almost certainty result in breaches of equality rules.”
The Prime Minister told Sky News that “no decisions have been taken at all.”
“We will be reporting on the work of the certification group in early April,” the PM said.
Kelly Beaver, Managing Director of Public Affairs at Ipsos MORI, said: “Our UK KnowledgePanel findings show that the public are once again prepared to do what it takes to get out of this pandemic.
“While they recognise the issues around vaccine passports, particularly their potential to exacerbate existing inequalities, their potential importance to ending lockdown and reopening the economy has won the argument for the majority of the British public,” she said.
