The Greek Council of State has ruled that kindergartens and nurseries can remove pupils who have not been vaccinated.
The supreme administrative court in the country stated that “it would be contrary to the principle of equality for a person to ask not to be vaccinated”, citing a constitutional obligation to protect public health. The ruling comes after a municipal government in Eastern Macedonia expelled four children whose parents refused vaccinations.
According to a report from Greek newspaper I Kathimerini, the parents of one of the children brought the matter to court and attempted to claim the move was contrary to the European Convention on Human Rights, but the court ultimately rejected their claims.
The case began in January, before the outbreak of the Wuhan coronavirus, with the parents claiming in their initial complaint that there was no pandemic in Europe at the time.
Some European businesses have already taken a position on the issue of coronavirus vaccinations, with Australian airline Qantas announcing plans in November to make proof of vaccination mandatory for international flights.
“We are looking at changing our terms and conditions to say for international travellers, that we will ask people to have a vaccination before they can get on the aircraft,” the airline’s CEO Alan Joyce said.
Last month, media reported claims the British government would introduce a coronavirus passport, labelled a “freedom pass”, which would be given to those who display immunity from the virus.
The UK’s vaccine minister, Nadhim Sahawi, said on Monday that while coronavirus vaccines would not be mandatory, some businesses may ask for proof of vaccination before entry or service is permitted. Senior minister Michael Gove was quick to row back the remarks, saying the following day: “I certainly am not planning to introduce any vaccine passports and I don’t know anyone else in government [who is].”
The regional government in Wales, however, has said that it will issue vaccinated residents “credit card-sized NHS Wales immunisation card” — supposedly to “act as a reminder for a second dose” and to “give information about how to report side effects”.