Seòmar agus comataidhean

I do not have direct control over that; as I said, the UK Government, as the host nation, does. However, my understanding is that its vaccination offer was made specifically to address the risk of those who are due to travel from poorer nations and who have no access to their own vaccination programme by getting them that access in advance of their travelling. That was what it was targeted at, but, as I said, I do not know the full details of which countries have taken up the offer, as the programme is being run by the UK Government as host nation.

Before I bring in Professor Leitch to address the clinical question of the vaccines, I would point out that a couple of European countries have made use of vaccines that have not been approved by the European Medicines Agency, and that has caused some issues in the European Union. However, as I said, Professor Leitch is probably better placed to advise you on the clinical aspects of the vaccines that are not on the World Health Organization’s list or which have not been approved by the European Medicines Agency or our own authorities.

The issue of vaccination certification is being taken forward by my colleagues in the Scottish Government health directorate. The introduction of the QR code this year was intended to make things easier for people who travel internationally. Some countries recognise only QR codes, so the provision of the codes has helped to overcome that particular problem.

There remains the option of getting a paper copy of the vaccination certificate. People can request one through NHS Scotland. Those who do not have access to a mobile device to use a QR code can have access to a paper version of their vaccination certificate. My understanding is that the certificate, which has a QR code on it, is printed off and the individual can then provide it to staff who are checking QR codes at the point when they enter a country. That is the principal way in which somebody who does not have access to a mobile device would do that.

I will bring in Professor Leitch on the recognition of vaccines but, before I do so, I will say that the approach that we have taken in Scotland and across the UK is to recognise vaccines that have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration in the United States and by the European Medicines Agency. We do that on the basis that the data on those vaccines is available to UK chief medical officers and to our regulatory bodies to allow them to assess it.

I do not know the specific details of the case relating to the individual who had vaccinations that are not recognised in the UK but, if you provide them to me, I am more than happy to ensure that health officials look into the issue and provide a detailed response.

Professor Leitch might be able to say a little more about the reasons why certain vaccines that are being used in other parts of the world are not recognised in our system. As I say, my understanding is that that is largely down to the ability to analyse the data associated with the vaccines.

The first thing to say is that nobody wants these international travel restrictions in place for any longer than is necessary. We want to bring them to an end as soon as it is safe to do so. Our traffic light system, which is operating across the UK, was proposed by people in the travel industry as a more effective approach and a means for opening up international travel to green-list countries, rather than a one-size-fits-all approach that does not allow any international travel. The system was designed to open up international travel, which it has achieved to some extent.

Going forward, we will see a greater focus on the importance of vaccination. That is being considered by the global task force, which is being taken forward at UK level. With the other UK nations, we are engaged in that work of looking at the options for the future. That will have a particular focus on the need for individuals to be vaccinated and to have certification of that. It will also consider what changes might be made to the traffic light system, and there will then be discussions at a four-nations level about the most appropriate route, based on the clinical advice that we receive and the advice from the joint biosecurity centre. On the timeline, the final milestone for the UK global task force report is 1 October. The work is to help inform what future changes could look like. I cannot tell you exactly what those will be, because we have not yet had those or the outcome of that process.

Be assured: nobody wants international travel restrictions for any longer than is necessary. However, the future will involve a significant focus on the need for vaccination—[Inaudible.]

There have been discussions between the Scottish and UK Governments on plans for COP26, including the public health arrangements, and the CMOs have been involved in them. Those plans are advanced in their development, and the UK Government is expecting to announce them publicly in more detail next week and to set out the details of the arrangements for those delegates who are travelling from other countries and who have not been vaccinated or whose vaccine might not be recognised.

There have been on-going discussions between the UK Government and the United Nations on this matter, with the involvement of the Scottish Government and public health officials, and we are at the point of setting out bespoke arrangements for COP26 delegates. As I have said, my understanding is that the UK Government intends to set those out next week.

The UK Government has also made an offer to delegates intending to attend COP26 but who have not had access to vaccinations to access the vaccination programme in their own country. That offer, which has been facilitated through the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, has been taken up by a number of countries; I do not have the specific details of which countries have done so, but the UK Government will. As I said, it has offered to help delegates who are looking to attend the conference to get vaccinated in advance of travelling.

The primary purpose of the restrictions on international travel is to reduce the risk of importing the virus and variants of concern. We receive advice on that through the four CMOs across the UK, who consider evidence from the joint biosecurity centre. The centre assesses the risk of the virus in countries around the world based on the available data, and tracks variants of concern. The four CMOs in the UK have signed off a methodology that provides a risk matrix for different countries on the risk of importing the virus and variants of concern. That matrix then informs the decision-making process on countries that are viewed as being a higher risk and those that are a lower risk, and the traffic light system, from red to amber to green. Countries are RAG rated on the basis of the risk assessment that is carried out by the joint biosecurity centre using the evidence that it has gathered on the risk of importation of the virus and variants of concern.

The principal issue and risk around variants of concern is the danger that they can escape our vaccination programme. For example, there were particular concerns around the beta variant, which I think originated in South Africa, and its ability potentially to escape the immune or antibody response that we had from our vaccination programme in the UK and so disrupt that programme.

The risk-based approach is informed by the methodology that was developed by the joint biosecurity centre and approved by the four CMOs. That informs the decision making on the RAG rating and traffic light system for international travel.

I am sorry, but are you asking what safe international travel looks like without the existing restrictions in place?

It would be fair to say that St Johnstone put in a fine performance when the team went to Turkey, even if the end result was not the one that we were all looking for.

I will bring in Professor Jason Leitch, because he is involved in a lot of the discussions with elite sports organisations, but before I do, I point out that the principal difference is that UEFA has imposed quite strict controls for clubs, such as St Johnstone, that participate in UEFA competitions. In effect, bubbles are created for the players and those who support them, and there is a testing regime associated with that. Part of the reason why we are able to give clubs such as St Johnstone an exemption is to do with the bubble that international bodies such as UEFA specify for the clubs and sportspeople who take part in such events. On that basis, we are able to provide them with an exemption.

Jason Leitch spends a considerable amount of time in discussions with international sports bodies and our domestic sports bodies about such matters, and he will be able to say more about the type of arrangements that they have in place. The issue is to do with the bubble that is created for participants in the events, and the nature of their travel to and from those events, which is very different from the arrangements for an individual who is travelling on their own to go on holiday or for business to a country that is on the red list.

I will let Jason Leitch say a bit more about the restrictions for international events.

The principal process for considering those issues and the options for going forward is through the work of the global task force, which is looking at what is happening in other parts of the world and the approaches that are being taken, including within the EU. That will inform our approach. Different countries will take different approaches to how they want to restrict international travel, based on the advice and information that they receive from their clinical advisers and those assessing the risk of international travel. That is the approach of the Scottish and UK Governments, and discussions that we are having at UK level are very much informed by the clinical advice and by thinking about how we can help to address some of the sector’s concerns about the need to open up international travel while minimising the risk of importation of variants of concern.

I have no doubt that, if I were appearing before the committee and we had removed all international travel restrictions and we were facing challenges as a result of having imported variants of concern, people would be asking, “Why did you remove those restrictions?” We need to ensure that we take the process forward in a safe, managed manner, so that we do not expose ourselves to variants of concern, which could undermine our existing successful vaccination programme.

Oil and gas workers working in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea need to comply with the RAG ratings—with what they should do on the basis of whether they have come from a red list country, an amber list country or a green list country. If they are travelling from Scotland to Norway and are based here, the regulations would be those that apply in Norway. When a person is returning to Scotland directly from Norway, what would happen would be based on where Norway is in the RAG ratings.

Individuals who are working in the oil and gas sector may come to Scotland for only a very short period of time in order to go back to the North Sea. We used to have a system in which they were required to get a test package for a test on day 2 and day 8, but that was changed back in August, following discussions with the oil and gas sector to ensure that it was carrying out regular testing of its staff. As a result, people who are in Scotland for only a day or two before they return to the North Sea no longer have to purchase a test package. Those amendments were made specifically to address concerns that the oil and gas sector had, and they followed discussions with the industry on its providing us with assurance on its testing arrangements for individuals who work in the sector.

Similarly, if seafarers are returning from a red list country, they are required to comply with the RAG rating and to go to managed quarantine facilities. If they are returning from an amber list country or a green list country, our restrictions for those will apply.

The approach that has been taken since the introduction of the traffic light system has significantly changed some of the early issues that we had for oil and gas workers and seafarers. However, there are restrictions that remain in place for both groups of workers if they are returning from a red list country, for reasons that are related to the risk assessment that was carried out by the joint biosecurity centre.