Vaccination cards given to patients after receiving the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine are a standard NHS procedure and not so-called immunity passports, the health secretary has said. 

As the UK’s largest ever immunisation programme began on Tuesday morning, Matt Hancock appeared in multiple media interviews to discuss the rollout of the vaccine – explaining that millions of people were expected to be given the jab before Christmas. 

The idea of immunity passports – a way of certifying who had been vaccinated or was considered ‘immune’ after contracting the virus (a concept which itself is still being determined by scientists – has been floated numerous times throughout the pandemic, especially as harder-hit sectors such as travel and hospitality find a way to get back on their feet. 

While some have welcomed the idea, it has also been met with heavy scepticism by those who say it risks creating a two-tier system where those who are at highest risk from the virus or are unable to be vaccinated face fewer freedoms than those without such proof. 

Pictures of Covid-19 vaccination cards, released ahead of the UK’s groundbreaking vaccine rollout, sparked an immediate backlash, with many conflating them with immunity passports. 

But, as the health secretary set out on Tuesday morning, the cards are nothing of the sort – and are instead a standard NHS procedure for reminding people to return for the necessary second vaccine several weeks after their first dose. 

Speaking to Sky News, the health secretary said vaccine cards being issued to patients were “standard NHS reminder cards” for the follow-up appointment for the second dose. 

He added: “We are not proposing to have a sort of immunity certificate that allows you to do different things.”

Hancock reiterated his message during an interview with the Today programme on Radio 4. He said: “The card that people are being given is a reminder card for their second appointment. It’s an absolutely standard NHS procedure because you’ve got to come back for the second appointment.”

After having the first dose of the vaccine, participants will be given a ‘vaccine card’ and instructed to keep it safe.

The blue card has space for the date and batch number for the two jabs the recipients will receive.

It also advises: “Don’t forget to attend your appointment to have your second dose of vaccine. You will have your best protection after two doses.”