Revellers would be offered the vaccine at Scottish nightclubs under plans to boost uptake among the young.
The proposal is at an early stage and concerns remain about the prospect of vaccinating drunk partygoers, but government figures believe that it may provide a useful way to inoculate large numbers of students and teenagers quickly. It comes as many pubs and nightclubs have been told that they can reopen for the first time since the pandemic began in March last year.
If it goes ahead, the nightclub vaccine plan would be the first of its kind in the UK. It was raised during talks between government officials and delegates from the night-time economy, but it is understood that Nicola Sturgeon sees merit in exploring it as a potential policy.
Although football stadiums and conference halls have been transformed into vaccination hubs, there has not yet been any attempt to deploy jabs at live events. According to the most recent figures, 72.5 per cent of 18 to 29-year-olds have received their first dose, and 24.2 per cent are double-vaccinated.
Sturgeon told MSPs yesterday that nightclubs were an effective way of “accessing young people” and that as the venues opened it might be possible to find “ways of using that to extend vaccination to young people”.
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As the country moves beyond Level 0 on Monday, the limits on the numbers of household groups that can mix and the rules on physical distancing, both indoors and outdoors, will be removed, providing a further boost for sectors such as hospitality, culture, sport, retail and tourism.
Some rules are remaining in place, with face coverings to be worn in most indoor settings while restaurants and pubs will still have to collect contact details for customers.
Sturgeon admitted that guidance on whether masks would have to be worn in nightclubs had not been finalised, amid questions about whether people would have to wear them when dancing or standing in venues where seating is extremely limited.
Donald Macleod, the owner of the Garage and Cathouse nightclubs in Glasgow, said that compulsory mask-wearing in such venues was a “ridiculous and dangerous idea which effectively makes opening unviable”.
The Night Time Industries Association also said that it was “deeply concerned” about such a requirement.
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In an answer to the Labour MSP Pauline McNeill, Sturgeon signalled that face coverings would not be mandatory on a danceflooor as she insisted that some restrictions would “make no sense” in nightclubs.
The Scottish Beer & Pub Association said that about 200 pubs were expected to open their doors on Monday for the first time since rules were imposed. Emma McClarkin, its chief executive, said: “This is the confirmation that so many in our sector have been desperate to hear.”
Gregor Scotland, head of policy at CBI Scotland, said that the removal of most restrictions could kickstart the economic recovery. He said: “Ending social-distancing requirements is a vital step that boosts business capacity just when firms need it most. There will also be a sigh of relief that double-jabbed staff will finally no longer have to self-isolate if they test negative once contacted by NHS Test & Protect.”
