Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

The Senator is correct. There has been a lot of disinformation, not all of which has been intentional. Sometimes, ideas start to float around and need to be clarified so I thank the Senator for bringing this issue to the attention of the House. I always welcome the opportunity to speak in the Seanad.

As the Senator is aware, an EU digital Covid certificate is digital proof that a person has been vaccinated against Covid-19, has received a negative test result or has recovered from Covid-19. There are three separate certificates for those three events. Being in receipt of an EU digital Covid certificate should enable the holder to be exempt from restrictions on freedom of movement. However, member states do have the right to impose additional travel restrictions on the holders of an EU digital Covid certificate provided they are necessary and proportionate to safeguard public health. In such a case, as a reaction to new variants of concern, the member state would have to notify the Commission and all other member states to justify this decision. Each country will be responsible for issuing certificates where vaccination, a positive test for recovery or a negative test has taken place in that country.

In Ireland, the Government recognises how stretched the HSE is in terms of trying to support the vaccination roll-out and business as usual while recovering from the damage caused by the recent ransomware attack. Consequently, we are looking at how we can best support the HSE with these new obligations. For example, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, through the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer, is working with the private sector to develop the system to support the negative test certificates so we will be issuing those certificates to say that a person has tested negative in the previous three days. However, the Department of Health and the HSE are responsible for issuing vaccination certificates and recovery certificates.

The EU digital Covid certificate contains only the necessary key information such as name, date of birth, date of issuance, relative information about vaccine test or recovery and a unique identifier. This data remains on the certificate and is not stored or retained when a certificate is verified in another member state. For verification purposes, only the validity and authenticity of the certificate is checked by the person verifying it who issued and signed it. All health data remains with the member state that issued an EU digital Covid certificate. The system is logical. Each EU digital Covid certificate will contain a quick response, QR, code with a digital signature to protect against falsification. When the certificate is checked, the QR code is scanned and the signature is verified. The signature can be checked using special software that can run from an app on a phone or any other device that can read a QR code.

Each issuing body has its own digital signature key that will be securely stored. We are only planning to have one or possibly two for our certificates. The European Commission has built a gateway through which the certificate signatures from each member state can be verified across the EU. It is important to note that the personal data of a certificate owner does not pass through the gateway because this is not necessary to verify the digital signature.

EU digital Covid certificates can be stored on mobile devices, although citizens can request paper versions if they need them. Both versions will have a QR code containing essential information as well as a digital signature to make sure the certificate is authentic. Member states have agreed on a common design that can be used for the electronic and paper versions to facilitate recognition. I am pleased to advise that the Irish certificate has been designed and the digital signature has already been tested with the EU. It is important that we stress test the overall process. We need to develop the most efficient way to enable travellers to be checked before departing the island and to enable visitors or those returning to be checked on entry to Ireland. To that end, the Government has set up a group of stakeholder Departments to work on the processes. This group is also liaising with other key stakeholders such as the carriers and testers. A great deal of work is required within very challenging timeframes to enable the system to work properly.I am confident that Ireland will be ready for 18 July, however. I commend everyone who has worked so hard during our preparations and who will continue to do so until everything is ready. Everyone recognises the importance of this initiative in helping the return to some form of normality. We are all committed to continuing to work closely in a co-ordinated manner, with the European Commission and member states, to support EU citizens' right to free movement with the roll-out of digital Covid certificates and the further opening up of travel from third countries.