Holidaymakers have been warned to be aware of the rules of the country they are travelling to after a number were forced to enter hotel quarantine in Malta.
As the Irish Examiner reports, Irish travellers to the island had not yet received their certificates and the HSE-issued cards were not accepted by Maltese authorities.
Malta's implementation of the Covid certificate is among the strictest in the EU and Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue has told travellers they should be aware of the requirements of the country they are visiting.
“This seems to be the one incident that has emerged since travel reopened this week and this is obviously a difficult situation for the small number that have required to go into quarantine in Malta.
“We've signed up to the digital Covid certificate system for travelling, but some member states do also have additional requirements and for example, in the Malta situation, they require that all coming into the country have to be fully vaccinated," the Minister told Newstalk Breakfast.
Public information
However, given the suggestion that travellers were told they would be able to enter the country with the handwritten cards, Mr McConalogue said that all public information given to travellers by the State must be accurate.
What I would say is that in advance of travelling, there is an obligation on all travellers to look at what the requirements are for the country that they are travelling to.
“There are websites there - the ReOpen EU website - that give specific information in relation to each member. It is more complicated flying, obviously, than it was before, and it is really important and that's one message I would give to everyone just check the situation with the country you're going to.”
Asked about the problems besetting the helpline for the digital Covid certificate, the Minister said that the additional line added yesterday allowed for a "much higher call volume", but accepted that there are still long delays.
He asked those who are not in need of their certificate immediately to perhaps wait a few days before calling the helpline.
Asked about Cabinet's decision today on reopening indoor hospitality, the Donegal TD said that the Government will look to "bring clarity" to the industry today.
He said that reopening would be done in a "safe manner". He said that having under 18s in hospitality settings had been given a lot of thought.
