Vaccine passports row: Robin Swann defends earlier opposition to plan

Mr Swann has expressed frustration this week at the failure of the Stormont Executive to develop a certification system that could be rolled out in Northern Ireland.

But he has faced questions contrasting his calls for the system to be developed with comments made earlier in the year when he said he would not support the use of domestic vaccine passports for the hospitality industry or for close-contact services.

The minister was challenged on the issue as he faced media questions at the Ulster Hospital today.

“I’ve heard commentary today especially in what I said in April and I think it’s always important when we look back over the last 18 months that we actually put things into perspective,” he said.

“In April, we had 80 to 90 positive cases per day; today we’ve over 1,300.

“In April, we had roughly 60 people in hospital with Covid; today we have roughly 350 people in hospital with Covid.

“So situations change, points of time change. In April, we didn’t have the Delta variant, now Delta is our major variant and more transmissible than the Kent variant which was dominant at that point.

“In regards to where a vaccine certificate could be used, there will be different benefits in different situations at different points in time.

“But before the Executive can make that decision collectively, we need to have one.”

Mr Swann stressed it was for the wider administration at Stormont to decide what sectors should use vaccine certification as an entry requirement.

But he said that could only happen once a system was developed.

He has criticised the Executive for failing to progress that development.

Yesterday, Mr Swann said it would take between six to eight weeks to get a scheme ready to use, once it was approved.

“Before we can discuss where we use it in Northern Ireland, we need to have one, and that has been part of my frustration in the debate that has happened recently over the past number of weeks that we haven’t got actually the decision where we’re able, as a health department, actually to take that step forward, spend the money and actually produce one,” he said.

On Monday, Stormont ministers agreed a plan to drop the one-metre social distancing requirement across a range of venues, but decided that mitigation measures requiring proof of vaccine for entry to indoor seated venues would be advisory only.

Meanwhile, two new coronavirus deaths have been reported by the Department of Health. Another 1,320 new confirmed cases were also reported in the last 24-hours.