We obviously had good news regarding a Covid-19 vaccine in the past week from Pfizer and BioNTech who say they have a vaccine that will be 90% effective. Given the issues relating to storage, this may or may not be the vaccine that will be rolled out in the coming months. I understand that others will be coming on stream pretty quickly too, which will be fantastic. We cannot allow this to result in any form of complacency as to how we deal with Covid-19. I am sure the Taoiseach will agree and perhaps next week we can discuss the plan for December. We need an indication from the Government as to what will be the plan for rolling out the Covid-19 vaccine. There is no doubt we will have some form of vaccine very soon, whether it is from Pfizer or others. I understand that a task force has been set up. I presume this has been in place for some time so the Taoiseach might tell us when it was set up, how it will work and who is on it. That all needs to be made public.

The Taoiseach might also inform us about discussions with the European Commission regarding its contract to purchase 300 million doses of the current vaccine. When will it be available, how much is coming to Ireland and how quickly? We need to plan and we need a detailed plan from the Government very soon. We admit that this plan will change; we know it will change. Across society and particularly across health care, however, there needs to be co-ordination. Everyone involved needs an indicative working plan from the Government. The Taoiseach might outline that for us.

I hope we will be able to administer the vaccine much better than we are administering the flu vaccine. We need to dramatically improve on how we roll out the Covid-19 vaccine versus what we are doing in respect of the flu vaccine. Some 1.3 million doses of the latter were distributed. Last year, I asked numerous times on the floor of the Dáil and at committee that we would actually purchase enough vaccines to give to everyone for free. The Government refused and we are where we are today. Now we know that a certain amount of the vaccine has been withheld.

We also know that there are huge administrative issues with the procedure by which the vaccine is being administered. Why in God's name are we expecting GPs to have to log on to the PCRS system every single time they administer a vaccine in order to claim payment? In 2020, surely this is a ridiculous administrative burden and is creating more time for vulnerable people and others to be around one another?

I have a number of specific questions for the Taoiseach. First, what is being done to get more flu vaccine doses? How are we going to ensure that the current roll-out is made more efficient? Why are we using an archaic system? Above all, what is the plan for the roll-out of the Covid vaccine, when it is announced - admittedly, it will be a working plan - and how will we ensure we get it out in a more efficient manner than we are doing with the flu vaccine this year?

The Deputy raised a number of issues. Beginning with the Covid-19 situation, the bottom line is that we are part of a pre-purchase agreement with the European Commission. The latter has advance purchase agreements so far, and prior to this week, with Oxford and AstraZeneca; with Janssen, which is owned by Johnson & Johnson; and with Sanofi Pasteur. Those agreements will be formalised following completion of clinical trials and the Janssen vaccine is expected in late December. The emerging news is that the Commission is on the cusp of signing, if it has not already signed, a deal with Pfizer and BioNTech. The President of the Commission has been leading that process and I have been in contact with her on it. It has been discussed at European Council meetings. Ultimately, it is the Commission's target to have an agreement with seven consortia. There is enough funding across the European system for arrangements with six consortia and it will probably go to a seventh. We will need the full range of options throughout 2021 because the next issue will be manufacture. All of those agreements include specific dosage allocations that mean we would get approximately 1% of whatever the European procurement is. I will get the detailed figures for the Deputy. That will be very significant for us in terms of targeting the vulnerable and those who would be a priority in terms of the receipt of a vaccine. The Deputy is correct in identifying logistical issues around the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in terms of the requirement for storage at -70 °C.

In August, we set up a vaccine strategy committee under the chairmanship of the Department of Health. The HSE set up its own group at the behest of the Minister. We have decided now to set up a whole-of-government group that will take in expertise from outside government in regard to organising the logistical operation that will be required. The Cabinet took that decision yesterday and the group will be chaired by Professor Brian MacCraith from DCU. The Chief Medical Officer will be on this high-level vaccine task force, as will Paul Reid, CEO of the HSE; Liz Canavan, chair of the senior officials group on Covid-19; Barry Lowry, Government chief information officer; and Paul Quinn, Government chief procurement officer. In addition, there will be a nominee yet to be confirmed from the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation, a logistics cold chain expert and a project management expert. The high-level vaccine task force will be tasked with co-ordinating preparations in this area and ensuring the nationwide roll-out of a Covid-19 vaccine when one is safe and ready to be distributed.

The Deputy also raised issues in regard to the administration of the flu vaccine. He probably heard Dr. Colm Henry speaking about that this morning. I do not accept that the entire system around the flu vaccine is archaic. It is a very extensive programme this year. There has to be measuring of what is happening in communities and there has to be targeting and prioritisation. This year's programme is a larger programme than in previous years and the HSE is satisfied in terms of its effectiveness so far.

In regard to the flu vaccine, I have in my hand the form that must be filled in at the GP's office. The requirement to do so means that people are spending longer in there. What is happening is that GPs are putting the forms through in bulk. The figures quoted in the press today reflect the fact that they do not complete the forms and put them through straight away because they do not have time to do so. GPs are overworked, as we know, at this time.

The other issue the Taoiseach needs to be conscious of is the question of why we have a situation where anybody can order a flu vaccine in some pharmacies. I have got the flu vaccine every year and am a huge advocate of it. I have not got it this year because I am not a priority. I presume the majority of Deputies are in the same position. We are not priorities if we are fit and healthy. If a person has an underlying issue, that is a different thing. Why is it the case that people can get it from some pharmacies just by booking it? In fairness, some pharmacies are being very deliberate in focusing on target groups, but others are not. That is an issue.

I thank the Taoiseach for providing extra information in regard to the plan for the roll-out of the Covid vaccine. I ask that he update it because it is a working programme that will need to be updated. There are huge numbers of people across the logistics of this who need to be kept up to speed on a weekly basis. Will the Taoiseach undertake, on a weekly basis and through some process of communication, to update the public as to how this will be dealt with? It is a process that is going to change in intensity over the coming weeks and months.

I accept the latter point the Deputy made. Whether or not it is a weekly update, I would like the task force to get down to work on this. That is why we have established the task force and I am very determined to move ahead, notwithstanding the work that has already been under way, to be fair, within the normal channels around immunisation. That includes the work of the National Immunisation Advisory Committee and the work done by the Department of Health and the HSE. Given the precise issues in terms of some of the vaccines, particularly the Pfizer-BioNTech one, logistics are important and external expertise is important to be joined to the process. I will keep Deputies up to date on that. There is a bit of work to be done by the companies in terms of getting approval from the statutory authorities and the vaccines being adjudicated to be safe for distribution.

In regard to the flu vaccine, applications for reimbursement through the PCRS have been made in respect of 700,000 doses, which indicates that a substantial amount of vaccine has been distributed but has yet to be administered. The HSE is currently assessing where the greatest level of demand for the flu vaccine remains before issuing the next 50,000 doses. In tune with what the Deputy was saying, the HSE wants the remaining 50,000 doses to be distributed by the end of November and to be prioritised for those who need them the most. I am not sure that it is such a big deal to fill in forms. There has been a good working relationship between the HSE and GPs.

Why is it not done electronically?

I agree that it should be done electronically.

We must move on to the next speaker.