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‘Not good enough’: Aberdeen Airport bosses criticise slow progress on digital vaccine certificates

Travellers from Scotland currently only get paper confirmation of their vaccination status, while England and Wales have a digital NHS app.
Travellers from Scotland currently only get paper confirmation of their vaccination status, while England and Wales have a digital NHS app.

Aberdeen Airport bosses say “Scotland is working with a pen and paper” when it comes to providing proof of Covid-19 vaccination.

Travellers from Scotland currently only get paper confirmation of their vaccination status, while England and Wales have a digital NHS app.

This has led to accusations from bosses at Aberdeen Airport that Scotland is lagging behind other parts of the UK who are “living in the digital world”.

We previously revealed the barriers Scots face in proving they have been double-jabbed in countries such as France after it launched a Covid pass which individuals must use to enjoy restaurants, cafes and tourist attractions.

Scots could face difficulties visiting tourist attractions in France as the Scottish Government has not yet developed its own digital Covid pass.

The Scottish Government awarded a £600,000 contract in June to Danish IT firm Netcompany to develop a vaccine passport.

Officials say they aim to launch this next month but opposition politicians have described it as an “embarassing oversight”.

Digital Covid-19 vaccination certificates

A spokesman for AGS Airports, which owns Aberdeen, Glasgow and Southampton airports, said: “Digital Covid-19 vaccination certificate systems have been in place in England, Wales and Northern Ireland for a number of weeks.

“Not only do these apps help streamline the vaccination proof process, they also minimise interaction between passengers and staff.

“Scottish passengers meanwhile currently have to go through the rigmarole of applying for a physical copy of the certificate and it is likely this will be the case until autumn.

Aberdeen Airport AIA
Aberdeen Airport bosses have criticised Scotland’s slow progress on developing its own digital Covid vaccination scheme.

“When it comes to the progress of our certificate verification system, Scotland is working with a pen and paper while our four-nation cousins are living in the digital world. It is simply not good enough.”

Scottish Conservative shadow transport secretary Liam Kerr previously said the Scottish Government needs to give a “confirmed date” for when Scots can access a digital vaccination passport.

He added: “There can be no more excuses for leaving Scottish passengers having to gamble on paper vaccination certificates when travelling abroad.”

A Scottish Government spokesman said: “We are developing an app to make it easier to show Covid status for international travel.

“This will include vaccination records and a QR code and we aim to release this next month.”