Ursula von der Leyen has praised Ireland’s “exemplary” response to the Covid crisis.
The EU chief gave Ireland top marks after she met Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, at TU Dublin in Gormanstown on Friday morning.
She also revealed that she personally used the new EU travel pass travelling to Dublin and that it “worked fine.”
The two leaders held a bilateral meeting where the Northern Ireland protocol, the EU’s Digital Covid Certificate and other topics of mutual concern were discussed.
Ms Von der Leyen was asked by the Irish media if she was concerned about Ireland’s slower than average reopening compared to the rest of Europe.
However, instead of criticising us as laggards, she lauded our careful response.
The President of the EU Commission said: “I think, I’ve looked at the numbers of the development over the last six months before coming here, and Ireland is exemplary in the way that it has approached this pandemic.
“With all the difficulties we’ve faced together, we’ve overcome together.
“So, an excellent performance so far as delivery of vaccines is concerned and the response of this country.
“So, here I can only commend you.
“And we have always said in Europe that we have common rules on common travel, but they have to be flexible in so far as you have to look at the specific epidemiological situation of a region.
“And therefore I welcome that Ireland has joined our Covid Certificate.
“I just today had the opportunity to test it, it works fine.
“But all our member States, and Ireland too, have always the possibility to look at the individual regional epidemiological situation and then to adapt the approvals to that situation.”
