MPs approve mandatory use of Covid passes for entry to nightclubs and large venues in England

MPs have voted 369 to 126, majority 243, to approve the mandatory use of Covid passes for entry to nightclubs and large venues in England.

Boris Johnson has suffered the largest rebellion since he became Prime Minister as nearly 100 Tory MPs voted against measures which would usher in the mandatory use of Covid passes.

The new measures passed the Commons thanks to the support of Labour, but the PM’s attempts to quell a rebellion on his own backbenches failed as a large number of his MPs defied the whip to vote against him on the issue of the passes, which have also been known as vaccine passports.

And Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, treasurer of the 1922 Committee said a leadership challenge next year had “got to be on the cards” if the PM did not change his approach.

Other measures under the Government’s Plan B also cleared the Commons, but the vote on Covid passes will be seen as a blow to Mr Johnson’s authority after a challenging week for the PM.

Earlier, Mr Johnson had addressed the 1922 Committee to try and convince them to back his plans.

And he had been individually speaking to those who had publicly said they would oppose the measure earlier in the day.

Some seemed convinced after the meeting, but in the end 126 MPs voted against the use of the passes at nightclubs and large venues.

Some 96 Conservative MPs voted against the Covid pass regulations for England.

Two Tory MPs also acted as tellers for the noes.

While 369 MPs backed the move, giving a majority of 243.

Before Tuesday, the biggest rebellion Mr Johnson had faced was in December 2020, against the strengthening of Covid-19 tier restrictions in England.

Then, a total of 55 Conservative MPs voted against the Government. This includes the two MPs who acted as tellers for the noes.

The 96 Conservative MPs listed as voting against the Covid pass regulations were: Adam Afriyie (Windsor), Lee Anderson (Ashfield), Shaun Bailey (West Bromwich West), Siobhan Baillie (Stroud), Steve Baker (Wycombe), Harriett Baldwin (West Worcestershire), John Baron (Basildon and Billericay), Scott Benton (Blackpool South), Bob Blackman (Harrow East), Peter Bone (Wellingborough), Ben Bradley (Mansfield), Karen Bradley (Staffordshire Moorlands), Graham Brady (Altrincham and Sale West), Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire), Steve Brine (Winchester), Miriam Cates (Penistone and Stocksbridge), Christopher Chope (Christchurch), Brendan Clarke-Smith (Bassetlaw), Geoffrey Clifton-Brown (The Cotswolds), Tracey Crouch (Chatham and Aylesford), Philip Davies (Shipley), David Davis (Haltemprice and Howden), Dehenna Davison (Bishop Auckland), Jonathan Djanogly (Huntingdon), Richard Drax (South Dorset), Iain Duncan Smith (Chingford and Woodford Green), Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East), Luke Evans (Bosworth), Liam Fox (North Somerset), Louie French (Old Bexley and Sidcup), Richard Fuller (North East Bedfordshire), Marcus Fysh (Yeovil), Nusrat Ghani (Wealden), Jo Gideon (Stoke-on-Trent Central), Chris Grayling (Epsom and Ewell), Chris Green (Bolton West), Damian Green (Ashford), James Grundy (Leigh), Robert Halfon (Harlow), Stephen Hammond (Wimbledon), Mark Harper (Forest of Dean), John Hayes (South Holland and The Deepings), Adam Holloway (Gravesham), Tom Hunt (Ipswich), Mark Jenkinson (Workington), David Jones (Clwyd West), Simon Jupp (East Devon), Alicia Kearns (Rutland and Melton), Julian Knight (Solihull), Greg Knight (East Yorkshire), Robert Largan (High Peak), Andrea Leadsom (South Northamptonshire), Edward Leigh (Gainsborough), Andrew Lewer (Northampton South), Julian Lewis (New Forest East), Chris Loder (West Dorset), Mark Logan (Bolton North East), Jonathan Lord (Woking), Tim Loughton (East Worthing and Shoreham), Craig Mackinlay (South Thanet), Anthony Mangnall (Totnes), Karl McCartney (Lincoln), Stephen McPartland (Stevenage), Esther McVey (Tatton), Stephen Metcalfe (South Basildon and East Thurrock), Damien Moore (Southport), Robbie Moore (Keighley), Anne Marie Morris (Newton Abbot), Holly Mumby-Croft (Scunthorpe), Robert Neill (Bromley and Chislehurst), Matthew Offord (Hendon), Mark Pawsey (Rugby), Mike Penning (Hemel Hempstead), John Penrose (Weston-super-Mare), Andrew Percy (Brigg and Goole), Tom Randall (Gedling), John Redwood (Wokingham), Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury), Andrew Rosindell (Romford), Gary Sambrook (Birmingham, Northfield), Greg Smith (Buckingham), Henry Smith (Crawley), Ben Spencer (Runnymede and Weybridge), Jane Stevenson (Wolverhampton North East), John Stevenson (Carlisle), Julian Sturdy (York Outer), Robert Syms (Poole), Derek Thomas (St Ives), Craig Tracey (North Warwickshire), Tom Tugendhat (Tonbridge and Malling), Theresa Villiers (Chipping Barnet), Christian Wakeford (Bury South), Charles Walker (Broxbourne), David Warburton (Somerton and Frome), Giles Watling (Clacton), and William Wragg (Hazel Grove).