O’Neill voices support for 24/7 vaccine rollout

By David Young, PA

Michelle O’Neill has voiced support for a round-the-clock vaccination programme when supply in Northern Ireland allows.

The deputy First Minister said she would back a ramping up of the rollout to run 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Ms O’Neill was asked about the Executive’s Office view on a 24/7 strategy by DUP MLA Pam Cameron.

“I don’t think it’s a position advanced yet by the Department of Health, but certainly getting the vaccine out as quickly as possible is top of all of our agendas and making sure that we are protecting people,” replied Ms O’Neill.

“So I’m very open to supporting such a proposal.”

Such an expansion would appear unlikely in the near future, as the vaccine programme is set to slow down in the coming weeks due to supply issues.

Delays in sourcing deliveries of AstraZeneca ordered by the UK Government is set to delay the expansion of the programme to the over 40 age cohort.

That was anticipated at the end of March, however health officials have said the vaccine supply issues will lead to a delay of between two and four weeks.

During question time, Ms O’Neill was challenged on the intensifying row between the UK and EU on vaccine supply and the prospect of the bloc preventing the export of supplies from European manufacturing plants.

The deputy First Minister said vaccines should not be treated as a “commodity”.

“Access to the vaccine should be based on need,” she said.

“Anybody who needs to get the vaccine should have it. It shouldn’t be a commodity, it shouldn’t be there to be traded, it shouldn’t be used as a bargaining chip.

“So I would encourage that everybody works together to ensure that we globally vaccinate all the people because what happens in this part of the world and the pandemic has an implication for what happens elsewhere, and vice versa.”