France joins other EU countries in toughening rules for COVID pass

 

France joins other EU countries in toughening rules for COVID pass

 

Italy has also adopted stricter rules.

 

BY THIBAULT SPIRLET

January 6, 2022 9:07 am

https://www.politico.eu/article/french-parliament-approves-covid-vaccine-pass/

 

French MPs approved a new COVID-19 vaccine pass early Thursday morning after three days of tumultuous debate, further fuelled by President Emmanuel Macron's remarks that he wanted to "piss off" the unvaccinated.

 

In the National Assembly, 214 MPs approved the vaccine pass, versus 93 who voted against, while 27 abstained. The measures will now be examined and voted on in the Senate next week.

 

The official entry into force of the law, originally planned for January 15, might be delayed because the conservative Les Républicains party said it would refer the matter to the Constitutional Council to ensure that the "balance" between the need to "protect" the French people and respect their freedoms is well respected.

 

If approved, the new measures would mean people aged 12 and over would have to show proof of being fully vaccinated in order to participate in certain activities, use public transport, and enter places like bars and restaurants. A negative COVID-19 test will no longer suffice as it did before, except for access to health facilities and services.

 

The vote comes as the French national health institute reported Wednesday a record 332,252 COVID-19 cases.

 

The new French pass resembles the so-called 2G rule that has been deployed in countries like Germany, which limits access to restaurants or theaters to those who have been vaccinated against, or recovered from, COVID. While stopping short of directly mandating vaccination it does effectively discriminate against the unvaccinated.

 

Supporters of the policy say it seeks to encourage the vaccine hesitant to get jabbed, although it has angered the holdouts and resulted in a series of protests — some violent — around Germany in recent weeks.

 

The Italian government agreed Wednesday to make vaccines mandatory for over 50-year-olds as it seeks to tackle a dramatic surge in daily coronavirus infections. Those in the workforce who are over 50 will have to show a health pass proving they have either been vaccinated or recently recovered from COVID-19, or face suspension from work from mid-February. Those over-50s who don’t work will have to either be vaccinated or face sanctions.

 

The new regulations, some of the strictest in Europe, were agreed upon after a record number of almost 190,000 cases were reported on Wednesday, and deaths reached the highest levels since spring 2020.