Liberal Democrat peers will challenge Ministers on their
proposals for Covid ID Cards for international and domestic use.
will
ask an urgent Private Notice Question today before Parliament
finishes prior to the Queen’s Speech in ten days time. A
Government minister is forced to respond in person.
is
expected to ask at 13.30:
"For months the Prime Minister, and Ministers said publicly the
Government does not support domestic Covid passports using test
results & vaccine status. said in a
letter published on 12 December in the BMJ - 'Widespread
asymptomatic testing could undermine the value of testing, as
there is a risk of giving misleading results. Rather, only people
with COVID-19 symptoms should get tested'.
"The MHRA; senior advisors at the Department of Health and Social
Care and the Statistical Society all agreed with him. Yesterday
Ministers revealed that the Lateral Flow Tests referred to
will be used as part of the Covid Certificates.
"Why is the Government proposing to use unreliable voluntary
surveillance tests as the mainstay of its passport scheme when
ministers and the experts say this is wrong?”
will also ask the Minister why the Government are
using Zuhlke to adapt the NHS App for Covid Certificates. Zuhlke
is the company who were awarded a £3.9m contract for building the
discredited and abandoned Covid Test and Trace App tested on the
Isle of Wight. He will also ask for details of the contract,
including the costs and why it was awarded without competitive
tender.
He will add that Lib Dems remain concerned at the idea of a
Government-controlled app holding person details and acting as a
passport to freedom, and that the party will continue to oppose
anti-freedom ID cards.
ENDS
Notes to Editors
- For months Ministers, including the Prime Minister,
and the
Vaccine Minister Nadim Zahawi) have denied they would use covid
passports or certificates (1) Big Brother Watch on
Twitter: "Football by force?
