Covid chaos: Decision to close Scottish mass vaccination centre due to COP26 climate plans described as ‘madness’

Jabs no more

Climate conference or Covid jabs, folks? Hardly worth asking — it wouldn’t be the conference. But then, those concerned don’t get asked if they want to delay, or go elsewhere for, their jabs so 20,000 foreigners (all fully jabbed?) can invade Glasgow for a chin-wag about the weather.
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A decision to permanently close one of Scotland’s key mass coronavirus vaccination centres at the end of this weekend has been described as “madness”, reports inews.

The facility at the SSE Hydro in Glasgow will close at the end of Sunday in preparation for the COP26 climate change conference in November.

Between now and then it is also due to host a series of concerts featuring artists including Genesis, Haim and McFly.

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) said it was switching its focus away from mass vaccination centres and towards mobile facilities and drop-in centres in local communities.

The vaccination centre moved to the SSE Hydro in April following the closure of NHS Louisa Jordan, the temporary hospital at Glasgow’s Scottish Exhibition Centre.

The decision to close the venue was criticised by Holyrood’s opposition parties, who pointed out that the vaccination programme was nowhere near complete.

Earlier this week, Scotland’s Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said he feared only 70 per cent of 18 to 29-year-olds would have had their first dose by the end of Sunday.

Addressing Mr Yousaf on Twitter, Glasgow Labour MSP Pauline McNeill said: “You must step in and stop this madness – at least until we have all our citizens double vaccinated.”

She added: “I can hardly believe this. Glasgow did have the highest levels of the virus and the slowest levels of vaccine rollout and the Hydro is to close on Sunday.

“We need this facility until everyone is double vaccinated. This is literally a race against this deadly virus.”

Liberal Democrat health spokesman Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP said: “The Health Secretary had better be sure that this will not delay anyone from getting their vaccine.”

Full report here.