THE HAGUE - In principle, Prime Minister Mark Rutte is not against a coronavirus vaccination passport, that would give people who have been vaccinated more freedom to travel and do other activities. But it is currently too early to consider implementing such a document, he said to RTL Nieuws after a video call with his EU colleagues on the coronavirus pandemic.

According to the departing Prime Minister, the main stumbling blocks for a vaccination passport aren't political, but technical in nature. "We really still have to debate this in the Netherlands. There are a number of fundamental questions surrounding it," he said. 

For example, there is still a lot of uncertainty about the effectiveness of vaccines, also in view of new strains of the virus popping up. There are still no absolute certainties about to what extent the various vaccines protect a person against infection, or from them passing an infection on. "Although the first reports are not unfavorable," Rutte said.

A number of countries are pushing for the introduction of a digital vaccine passport that would give EU citizens the same rights to free travel and the like in all EU Member states. Rutte said that such a document "may be useful in the future". 

According to the European Commission, it will take at least another three months of technical preparations before such a certificate can be issued.