Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for being at our select committee meeting, for his detailed overview, and for the material that was circulated to us yesterday, which I appreciate. In a year of negatives, as Covid has been a major negative in everyone’s life, it is good we are coming to a point where it has become more manageable. There are two trajectories almost at intersection point now, namely, the vaccines versus a declining or at least a levelling of the Covid rate. There is a much to hope for and it is hoped Thursday will allow for a safeish reopening of the country or at least the next step in that process. It is also welcome that the Government has awarded an additional €4.03 billion to the Department’s budget on top of its 2020 allocation.

I wish to come at this from an angle that has not been covered thus far in our deliberations. Another potential budgetary constraint on Minister Department is the digital green certificate, which is being worked on at European level. Although it deals with international air travel, my understanding is it will come under the remit of the Minister’s Department. A vote is to take place on it in European Parliament this week. We know the technical specification of it was agreed and published yesterday by the European Commission. The meat is very much going on the bone. We will be at the point shortly where this will be put to each member state to ratify and then to decide how they will implement it. There are three pillars to it. It will certify those across Europe who have been vaccinated, those who have been PCR-tested and who were negative at the time they presented themselves at the departure gate at an airport, and it will also carry data relating to those who have recovered from Covid. The European Commission is intimating there will be a six-week lead-in or implementation period.

That concerns me a little with Ireland being geographically peripheral and a little more cut off from Europe, with our nearest neighbours having departed the European Union. That lead-in period could throw us a little bit off kilter, with opportunities lost to other nations. Have we as a country and the Minister's Department the allocated finances for this, given we are talking about his Department's budget for this year? Are the finances in place and, more importantly, is there a team, a structure, and the necessary software in place? Is everything ready to roll as soon as the digital green certificate is agreed by European Heads of State in order that we can implement it in Ireland?