The government has dropped proposals for university students to be required to show Covid vaccine passes to attend lectures.
The climbdown comes just five days after Downing Street floated the idea of demanding proof of vaccination or negative test to allow access to lecture rooms and halls of residence when autumn term begins in September.
The proposal sparked an angry backlash among Conservative MPs, with as many as 50 believed to be considering rebelling against legislation on mandatory certification for venues like nightclubs and conference centres – and some threatening to boycott the party’s annual conference in Manchester if they are forced to show Covid passes.