Around 63 percent of people in Finland support the introduction of a Covid pass or certificate model, according to the results of a survey commissioned by business lobby the Confederation of Finnish Industries (EK).
The survey, conducted by pollster Taloustutkimus, also revealed that 23 percent of those surveyed were not in favour of the model, while 14 percent did not have an opinion on the matter.
"The result of the survey is a clear message that people in Finland want to return to normal everyday life. We will probably continue to live alongside the coronavirus in the future, but vaccination will provide adequate protection against it," CEO of EK Jyri Häkämies said in a press release, adding that "we cannot keep society indefinitely closed when the grounds for closures are no longer there."
If adopted, the document would function as official proof of administered vaccines, a recent negative coronavirus test result or recent recovery from the virus.
Many countries across the world are turning to Covid passes or certificates as a means of ensuring safety in crowded spaces, such as bars and restaurants, or for use on public transport. Plans to set up the Covid pass have already been drafted, or are already in use, in the UK, the US and France.
Denmark adopted the coronapas earlier this year in the form of a digital phone application. The coronapas has allowed the country to open up, with museums, theme parks, cinemas and gyms able to safely operate almost as they did pre-pandemic.
The Taloustutkimus poll further revealed that 86 percent of respondents had already received at least the first dose of the coronavirus vaccine and 6 percent still planned to take it. On the other hand, around 6 percent did not plan to take the vaccine, and 2 percent were still uncertain.
Häkämies said that the Covid pass would not only aid in organising events more safely, but also encourage more people to get vaccinated.
"It is very good that people in Finland have such a positive attitude towards the coronavirus vaccine. It is clearly understood that the vaccine is the only way to overcome the pandemic that has burdened people and society in so many ways. Of course, I would have hoped for there to be even less anti-vaxxers. But the restrictions cannot be justified by the fact that some citizens do not want to voluntarily get the vaccine," Häkämies said.