Michael Clifford: Level with the public about the vaccine roll out

There is a body of evidence that suggests the roll-out of the vaccines here is not being conducted in an organised, planned manner

A doctor prepares the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine for injection. It has been claimed that a GP practice near Belmullet received 420 Covid vaccines last Friday instead of 42. All is not as it is being portrayed in the rollout of vaccines.
Picture: Nick Potts/PA Wire

“Teething problems” is an expression being used by state agencies and the government to explain away issues around the vaccine roll-out. Teething problems would have been perfectly acceptable 12 months ago. Back then the World Health Organization’s Mike Ryan exhorted that “perfection is the enemy of good” in fighting the virus.

As with much else, Mr Ryan has said in the last year, he was spot on with that observation. The onset of the pandemic was a major shock. Tackling it required fast action, even if that meant, for instance, misspending money in the short term, or making management decisions that might appear rash in normal circumstances. Action, immediate and messy if necessary, was the main thing.