Laurence Crumbie
THE Spanish Minister for Tourism, Maria Reyes Maroto, announced today that vaccine passports could be introduced in May.
“We could be in a position to start implementing the digital passport (when the international tourism fair FITUR starts on May 19)”, she told Antena 3 TV station.
The news comes just a day after Maroto said that Spain plans to reopen tourism when 30-40% of the nation’s population has been immunised against COVID-19.
Grievously affected by the pandemic due to its reliance on tourism, Spain is eager to see its beaches filled in summer and has described itself as ‘the most active champion of digital vaccine passports’.
Countries around the world are keen to implement similar schemes, and the EU is planning to publish draft legislation on a ‘green digital pass’ on March 17.
The Spanish Secretary for Tourism, Fernando Valdes, has also said that a bilateral travel plan could be struck with the UK if the EU fails to reach an agreement on vaccine passports.
