Vaccine passports are set to be required for large venues at the end of September to avoid fresh Covid restrictions, a top Tory has said.
Nadhim Zahawi said ministers want to keep the economy open and avoid an "open, shut, open, shut strategy" for businesses if infections spike.
The Vaccines Minister said the Government was "absolutely on track" to continue checking vaccine status for large events, despite major opposition from Tory MPs.
Boris Johnson ditched his opposition to Covid passports in July when he served notice that people could have to prove their vaccine status to go to nightclubs and other large venues in September.
The move was interpreted at the time as an attempt to encourage young people to get jabbed.
But Downing Street has made it clear the Government plans to press ahead with the plans.
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Asked if the Government had made a decision on vaccine passports, Mr Zahawi told Sky News: "We are looking at, by the end of September when everyone has had the opportunity to be fully vaccinated, for the large venue, the venues which could end up causing a real spike in infections where we need to use the certification process.
"To look at what the FA has done, done so brilliantly, in terms of checking vaccine status to reopen football, that is the right thing to do.
"We are absolutely on track to continue to make sure that we do that."
He went on: "The reason being is that I, as does the PM, want to make sure that the economy remains open.
"The worst thing we can do for those venues is to have a sort of open, shut, open, shut strategy because we see infection rates rise because of close interaction of people.
"That's how the virus spreads, if people are in close spaces in large numbers we see spikes appearing. The best thing to do then is to work with the industry to make sure they can open safely and sustainably in the long term and the best way to do that is to check vaccine status."
He said he would do "everything in my power" to avoid another lockdown.
Mr Zahawi said he wants to continue the transition of the virus "from pandemic to endemic status" so that people can enjoy what they want to enjoy with the economy fully open and "get life back to as normal as we can make it as quickly as possible".
Mr Johnson performed a major U-turn on vaccine passports in July just days after nightclubs reopened for the first time since the start of the pandemic.
He said at the time: “I should serve notice now that by the end of September, when all over-18s will have had their chance to be double-jabbed, we are planning to make full vaccination the condition of entry to nightclubs and other venues where large crowds gather."
