Emmanuel Macron will hold a meeting with members of the government next week to prepare the establishment of a "
health pass
", which will not be a "
vaccination passport
", in view of the reopening of cultural places and restaurants closed by the Covid-19 pandemic, he announced on Thursday.
Read also: Covid: Europeans at the top to counter variants, divided on the vaccine passport
The implementation of such an instrument "
will pose many technical questions, respect for individual data, organization of our freedoms
" and, for that, "
we must prepare (it) now technically, politically, legally
" , explained the president during a press conference at the end of the first day of a videoconference between the 27 leaders of the European Union.
"
I feel that there is a lot of confusion sometimes on this subject
", he added, insisting on the fact that the sanitary pass "
will not be only linked to vaccination
".
Because, he argued, "
if we manage to reopen certain places, we cannot condition their access to vaccination, even though we would not have even opened vaccination to the youngest
".
At the same time, European leaders discussed on Thursday the implementation of a vaccination certificate that will "
reorganize movement between states more fluidly
" when border restrictions are lifted.
"
We must prevent each country from developing its own system
" and for that "
work towards a common medical certification
", indicated the French president.
Common European standards to be expected
The 27 called on the European Commission to define common standards for mutual recognition of vaccine certificates.
But there is no common position at this stage on the rights they could open.
Greece, anxious to save its tourism industry, submitted in January a proposal to the Commission for the establishment of a
European "
vaccination certificate
" by the summer holidays.
France has so far been reluctant, believing it was too early when only a minority of people have access to the vaccine.
"
If things go better, none of us will accept that in order to attract, for example, tourists, there is a country which is less than the other and which takes risks by bringing in people from the end of the world to fill its hotels,
”warned Emmanuel Macron.