I propose to take Questions Nos. 573 and 603 together.
On 17 March 2021, the European Commission published its proposal for a Regulation to introduce a ‘Digital Green Certificate’ to facilitate safe free movement inside the EU during the pandemic. The proposed regulation lays down a framework for the issuance, verification, and acceptance of interoperable certificates. The intention is for the digital green certificate to be a temporary measure.
The Government is keen to ensure that every effort should be made to achieve alignment across the EU in preparing for reopening of international travel for non-essential purposes as soon as it is safe to do so. An interdepartmental group of senior officials from relevant departments have been progressing policy work in respect of the proposed EU Digital Green Certificate and vaccination certificate.
Operational aspects for the interoperable certificate system are being progressed on a cross-Departmental basis. The software required to create vaccination certificates is being developed, however, the timeframe is very challenging and new operational processes will need to be established to support this service.
The priority in Ireland at the moment is the core systems that support the rollout of vaccines and regaining and maintaining control over the disease and preventing a further wave of infection, until the vaccination programme can offer a widespread population level of protection.