Dr. Niamh Power:

I am a graduate of UCD school of medicine, a fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, an airline pilot and a director of V1 Medical. We provide rapid antigen testing at our clinics in Dublin and Cork. Two colleagues and I established V1 Medical in November 2020, as no other facility was offering rapid antigen testing convenient to Dublin Airport, despite many EU countries already accepting antigen testing for travel.

In fact, when the Dutch Government updated its rules on 15 January requiring an antigen test within four hours of departure for every passenger to the Netherlands, including transit passengers, we were still the only company offering rapid antigen testing and were contacted by Dublin Airport Authority, DAA, KLM and Aer Lingus to provide and facilitate their passengers on their flights that day.

We offer a fast and convenient service and a vital service to air and shipping crews and engineering professionals, in particular, who need to travel for essential reasons. Due to unforeseen circumstances, they may need to reschedule or cancel their travel plans at short notice. We have contracts for services with ASL Airlines, Aer Lingus, CityJet, Doyle Shipping Group in Dublin and Cork, Candina Group, as well as several engineering companies. We provide testing with results and certification within 30 minutes using the Roche/SD Biosensor test which is validated by the HSE and on the EU Commission's list of mutually recognised tests.

We have developed robust and efficient procedures to ensure every customer makes his or her flight on time. We provide full flexibility, including refunds up to two hours before appointment time. We accommodate urgent cases, whether it be crews with schedule changes or people who need to travel at short notice due to family illness or bereavement. With more than 60 years of experience in aviation between us, we understand flexibility around travel is key. This is simply not achievable with PCR testing, even without taking into account the much higher cost of PCR.

Ireland is an outlier in the EU and among our most important trading partners with regard to antigen testing. The USA, the UK, Germany, Netherlands, Italy, Poland, Croatia, Bulgaria, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Czechia, Lithuania, Finland, Luxembourg, Austria and Spain are some of the countries accepting antigen testing for travel. Ireland is the most disconnected country and Dublin the most

disconnected city in Europe, according to Eurocontrol.

As countries across the EU connect with the EU digital Covid certificate and with less than six weeks before Ireland is due to go live on 19 July, we have been unable to obtain any information or guidance on what is required for us to be involved. We want to be prepared, so when the Government is ready to launch this important initiative, we too are ready. Ireland and our aviation, travel and tourism industry cannot afford any further delays. The US and overseas tourist spend is significantly higher than domestic tourist spend, so encouraging staycations will not be enough to save many businesses which depend on foreign tourism.

Our airports, especially Shannon Airport and Cork Airport, are in danger of further losing connectivity. Our slots at Heathrow Airport are not ours - they belong to the International Airlines Group, IAG, which can easily repurpose them for more profitable routes. Dublin Airport, which has been successfully serving as a transatlantic hub for flights from Europe, is already losing these customers to UK bases. Our connectivity with the UK, once among the busiest routes in the world, is suffering because of restrictions within the common travel area, CTA, all on this side of the Irish Sea.

We need to plan urgently for the implementation of the EU digital Covid certificate, including allowing antigen testing for both inbound and outbound travel. There needs to be immediate engagement with private providers who have the experience to deliver the digital Covid-19 certificate to the travelling public.