Mr. Fergal Goodman:

I am conscious of the committee's time constraints so I will perhaps keep to just a few brief remarks in order that we do not go over old ground all the time. As Professor MacCraith said, we are just four weeks into the programme now, and for very understandable reasons there is intense interest in it nationally and internationally. It has become a rolling story in some ways, and that probably makes it additionally difficult to continue in a straightforward way to plan and progress the programme under that spotlight. Operationally, for the HSE and for the Department, we want the focus to be very much on working through this programme and dealing with the evolving events. I think Dr. Colm Henry on the radio this morning - I do not know if anyone heard him - noted the constantly evolving nature of everything to do with the pandemic, and the vaccination programme, to an extent, is beset by the same challenges.

The priority from the start of the programme has been, first, to vaccinate and protect those who are at greatest risk from Covid-19 in terms of morbidity and mortality. They are, as we know, predominantly older people in residential settings in the first place, and we will shortly move on to older persons in the community as well.

As members will be aware, front-line healthcare workers, on whom the country has been, and will remain, so dependent, have comprised a group that has been addressed early. That work is in progress.

Regarding the challenges around authorisation of the AstraZeneca vaccine, we will hear from the European Medicines Agency, EMA, by early this afternoon. That will provide a point of certainty from which we can move forward with greater clarity about supply and deliveries. It will be another tool in our armoury, so to speak, with the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines already in use.

My colleague, Ms Elizabeth Headon, is with me today. The committee has identified communications and the communication strategy as an area of particular interest. The Department works closely with the HSE on the communications aspect of the programme. Work on it has been in train for several months. It plays out in phases as the programme progresses. It is crucial for the public to have confidence in, and understanding of, the vaccines; to be able to access accurate information easily; to receive relevant details at the level of the individual about when, where and how someone will receive his or her vaccination; and to feel confident in the administration of the programme. The Department has provided the committee an ancillary report outlining the press and broadcast advertising to date as well as social media and news coverage, which we hope members will find useful. There are high levels of public engagement with the communications channel, with 860,000 visits to the gov.ievaccine site and 414,000 visits to the hse.ievaccine site. Social media engagement has reached a figure of 2.5 million.

Fortunately, research carried out weekly for the Department has demonstrated growing public confidence in and demand for Covid-19 vaccination. In the early stages, there were questions about whether sufficient numbers in the population woulne, a number well up on what we saw last year.

There is a great interest in and demand for information. At times, it could be said that there is a frenzy of information. It is important that there be clear communication from all arms of the State regarding the importance of the programme and the fact that it is complex and being run and planned on a clear basis, as set out in the strategy and initial implementation plan. That plan is a living document and will continue to evolve as we get additional products, the quantity being received comes on stream and we learn more in Ireland and internationally about how the vaccines work in practice. It will be an evolving programme and will be a big job for most of the year ahead, albeit fortunately one with extremely positive prospects for the country as we vaccinate more of the population.