The Minister for European Affairs has denied claims by the CEO of Ryanair that Ireland’s delay in implementing the EU Digital Green Certificate will result in “chaos” in airports once international travel resumes.
Michael O’Leary said that there was already “chaos” at Dublin Airport this week when fully vaccinated EU visitors were told that “either they have to spend 10 days in quarantine or they won’t be allowed in at all”.
He also criticised the Government’s delayed adoption of the EU travel pass in an open letter to Transport Minister Eamon Ryan.
The new EU Digital Green Certificate was rolled out across each Member State on Thursday, apart from here.
The cert will allow people to travel anywhere in the EU, provided they are fully vaccinated, have fully recovered from COVID or undergo a negative COVID test.
Ireland is set to adopt the scheme from July 19th in line with the return of international travel.
Mr O’Leary requested from Minister Ryan that he will “finally act” to switch on the EU Green Cert for fully inoculated people.
In response, Minister for European Affairs Thomas Byrne said Ireland is ready to comply with the travel pass system on July 19th, adding that he does not anticipate long queues or confusion in Irish airports.
Speaking to Aideen Finnegan on Newstalk Breakfast Weekends, he said he was “surprised” to hear the Ryanair boss’s claims that fully vaccinated people from the EU were being threatened with mandatory hotel quarantine.
“I’m very surprised to hear that anyone from Italy, Belgium or other European countries that Michael O’Leary mentioned would be threatened with mandatory hotel quarantine because it doesn’t exist for anyone from the European Union,” Minister Byrne said.
“So not only would they not be put into it, they wouldn’t be threatened with it for any reason, so I’m very surprised that that would be the case.”
He acknowledged that Ireland was slow compared to…