Covid in Scotland: Vaccine passport app launch hit by problems

Major problems have been reported with Scotland's Covid vaccine passport app, just hours after its launch.

People now need proof they have had two doses of vaccine in order to enter nightclubs and many other large events.

The NHS Scotland Covid Status app only became available to download on Apple and Android devices at about 17:30 on Thursday.

But many people have said they were unable to access their vaccination status through the app.

The Scottish government said the volume of people trying to access the app may be responsible for the issues.

Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross said there should be an "indefinite delay" to the rollout until the issues are addressed.

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Anecdotal evidence on social media suggested that problems may have arisen when people tried to use their NHS CHI number to register.

This step comes after users are asked to take a picture of their passport or driving licence.

A government spokesman said: "Some people may be experiencing issues which are likely to be caused by extremely high initial traffic and a large number of users trying to access the app at once. We advise people whose data is not found to try again a couple of hours later."

But Scottish Conservative Leader Mr Ross said: "The government has just a few hours to act quickly and prevent a weekend of chaos at venues across Scotland.

"Thousands of people will be at the football and going out to hospitality premises this weekend.

"This plan should really be scrapped altogether but, if the SNP insist on charging ahead, they must indefinitely delay the vaccine passport scheme until the most basic issues are ironed out."

Source: [link to www.bbc.co.uk (secure)]