Covid-19: Vaccine passports should already be in place, say ministers

A mandatory system of Covid-19 vaccine certificates should already have been introduced in Northern Ireland, two Stormont ministers have said.

Naomi Long and Nichola Mallon commented after Health Minister Robin Swann said the executive would discuss a mandatory Covid-19 passport scheme this week.

His proposal comes two weeks after social distancing rules were eased.

The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) has said its ministers will decide when they see the detail of Mr Swann's plan.

Mr Swann has said that ministers will consider which sectors may require people to show certificates to gain entry.

Any ministers opposing to the idea "need to set out very clearly what their alternative is", said Ms Mallon, the SDLP deputy leader.

Alliance Party leader Mrs Long, said the system should have been put in place when social distancing was scrapped in bars, cafes and restaurants and nightclubs reopened in Northern Ireland on 31 October.

Sinn Féin has said its ministers will be guided by advice from health experts.

Northern Ireland's health department has updated its COVIDCert NI app, which was introduced to allow people travelling abroad to show proof of vaccination, to include a certificate for "domestic use".

But use of the domestic certificate is not mandatory - that will be up for discussion by Stormont ministers on Wednesday.

On Tuesday morning Mrs Long, the justice minister, told BBC News NI: "I felt that the time to do this was at the point when we were making additional relaxations.

"Those who are vaccinated are less likely to become seriously ill, and if they're less likely to be seriously ill they're less likely to put pressure on the health service."

But she said it was important to maintain that other measures for dealing with Covid-19.

"[Vaccine passports are] not going to be the one thing which sets us out and deals with the fact we have rising Covid levels in the community," she said.

"The thing that's most likely to do that is people taking personal responsibility."

Mrs Long said she did not support the introduction of Covid-19 passes "when it comes to access to public services".

"I think that would be discriminatory but I think when you're talking about areas of life which are optional it is reasonable, particularly where there is no social distancing possible," she added.

If Covid passports are to be introduced in Northern Ireland it will not be a magic solution - they are just another piece of the jigsaw of measures designed to offer an additional ring of protection.

The hard evidence is that vaccines work so more proof of individuals being vaccinated will help control an environment that's full of the virus.

Think about it - if you reduce the chance of infectious people entering high-risk settings such as bars and nightclubs you reduce the risk of transmission.

But it would be wrong to expect Covid certificates to solve all of our problems.

It worked in the Republic of Ireland to an extent but now that the effectiveness of the vaccine is waning and more people are indoors certs there aren't just as powerful.

Like social distancing, hand-washing, vaccines and boosters, Covid certificates are just another part of the armoury.

With infection figures rising, the Department of Health needs all the ammunition it can get its hands on as it continues to battle the virus.

Ms Mallon, the infrastructure minister, said the introduction of Covid-19 vaccine passports was "long overdue".

"It really is the right and responsible thing and I hope that all of the executive can examine the evidence and we can agree this and we can get moving on it extremely quickly," she told BBC News NI.

"No-one wants to be taking these decisions but we're in a public health emergency and so we have to take difficult unpopular decisions.

"We need to do a last push, if you like, to maximise vaccine uptake and we know when you look at other places that when you incentivise it more people come forward."

Since July, people in the Republic of Ireland have had to show proof of their jabs for indoor hospitality.

On Monday Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots, a DUP MLA who previously served as a Stormont health minister, said he was opposed to introducing a mandatory system of vaccine certification.

"We're over 90% of people vaccinated and we need to encourage the remainder to get vaccinated," he told BBC News NI.

"Forcing them is not going to work and I don't think creating that two-tier system is something I would be prepared to accept."

His party colleague Paul Frew also tweeted his opposition to the proposal.

On Tuesday a DUP spokesman said: "We don't want to be in a situation where people's access to services is based solely on vaccination.

"That sits uncomfortably with us but we must always act in the interest of protecting our health service."

The Northern Ireland Hotels Federation, a trade body representing the sector, said Stormont must "outline exactly what" was required before such a policy came into effect.

"The real thing is the clarity," said its chief executive Janice Gault.

"The public need to know why this is being done, what is expected of them, just as businesses need to know what they are looking for and how it will be enforced."