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A DUP MLA has welcomed a “u-turn” from Sinn Fein, after First Minister Michelle O’Neill agreed to sponsor an awareness event for those who say they were injured by the Covid vaccine.
Democratic Unionist MLA for North Antrim, Paul Frew, says that the Sinn Fein Vice President has agreed to sponsor the event, to be held in the long gallery in Stormont Parliament Buildings this October.
Mr Frew said that the agreement to sponsor the event comes after a year of pressure and activism from Vaccine Injured and Bereaved Support Group NI (VIBS NI) who said last September that theory were “astounded” the event had been “prevented” from taking place by nationalist MLAs at Stormont.
The group, which launched last August, is made up of individuals based in Northern Ireland who claim to have experienced injuries or bereavement due to the Covid vaccine.
The support group, set up to assist people who say they were either injured or bereaved by the side effects of covid vaccines, has already met with the First Minister and Deputy First Minister in Stormont Castle, the seat of Executive power here in Northern Ireland.
The group explained last year how rules around booking an event at Stormont mean organisers must secure three signatures from MLAs, both the unionist and nationalist designation. VIBS-NI previously said they had secured signatures for the event to take place from a number of unionist MLAs, who they said were willing to sponsor the event.
The advocacy group said that for reasons which were unclear, no nationalist MLA had been prepared to sign to sponsor the event, which meant it had not been able to take place. The group said that MLAs from the SDLP have informed them that it was their party policy not to sign for such an event to take place at Parliament Buildings.
The European Medicines Authority (EMA) and EU Member States say they continuously monitor the safety of COVID-19 vaccines to ensure any possible risks are detected and managed as early as possible. EMA continuously checks new information on the safety of all vaccines available in Europe from many data sources.
The EMA currently says that COVID-19 vaccines authorised for use in the EU and European Economic Area (EEA) are safe and effective.
As of December 2024, around 1 billion vaccine doses have been administered in EU/EEA countries, the EMA says. There have been around 1.7 million spontaneous reports of suspected side effects in the EU/EEA, which translates into about 0.2 spontaneous reports for every 100 administered vaccine doses, the regulatory body says.
Further, there have been roughly 12,000 spontaneous reports of fatal outcomes in the EU/EEA, which translates into about 0.001 reported fatal outcomes for every 100 administered vaccine doses.
In February, the European Medicines Authority updated its public health advice around Covid vaccine side effects.
“A number of side effects reported with COVID-19 vaccination have drawn public attention,” it said.
“Some of these – such as anaphylaxis, Guillain-Barré syndrome and myocarditis and pericarditis – are adverse events of special interest.
“These medical events or conditions have been identified as possible concerns based on previous experience with other vaccines, and are therefore closely monitored.”
The EMA clarifies: “When someone has a medical issue or dies following a vaccination, this does not automatically mean the vaccine was the cause. Disease or underlying conditions may be a factor.”
VIBS NI now say the upcoming event will bring together those who have been injured or bereaved due to the Covid-19 vaccine, alongside policy makers and legislators, including politicians and department officials.
Mr Frew said that the agreement to sign for the event came after almost a year of constituents “who have been injured or bereaved attempting to get Sinn Fein MLAs to sign for the event.”
“The original event was to be held in November 2023 but because no MLA for Sinn Fein would sign it and Colum Eastwood Leader of the SDLP forbid his MLAs from sponsoring the event it had to be delayed,” Mr Frew told Gript.
The MLA claims that “people from all backgrounds, religions and political belief structures have been damaged by vaccines,” adding that “for some unknown reason the nationalist parties refused to sponsor the event effectively blocking the event from taking place.”
“This changed when VIBS I held a protest outside Parliament Buildings in July and stood in the cold at the bottom of the steps of Stormont. With the pressure that Paul Frew MLA was applying in the chamber, the First Minister eventually relented and met with some of the vaccine injured and bereaved community, at that meeting Michelle O’Neill agreed to sign for the event to go ahead,” the MLA added.
Mr Frew continued: “This is a welcome step albeit belated by the First Minister and I now look forward to the event in Parliament buildings whereby people can explain to MLAs and officials how their injuries or loss impacts on them daily; how they feel ignored and gaslight by government officials and politicians; and how they need a clear pathway to care.
“In many ways, the blocking of this event by the SDLP and SF illustrated perfectly how these wording citizens had been treated these past years. I can’t really explain how they found themselves in this atrocious position of blocking injured and disabled people, it can only be because these parties supported the coercion of people to get the vaccine through the vaccine certification scheme,” he said.
VIBS NI said it welcomed action by Michelle O’Neill in her capacity as First Minister and Sinn Fein Vice President to agree to sponsor the awareness event – which is to take place on Monday 14th October.
‘AN END TO OBSTRUCTION’
VIBS NI, meanwhile, said they hoped the meeting in October will signal “an end” to the “obstruction” the group says it has experienced over the past 12 months.
“VIBS NI are delighted that we will now be able to hold an awareness event at Parliament Buildings in the Long Gallery where ordinary people who have been injured or bereaved due to the covid vaccine will be able to tell their story and share their experiences with Members of the legislative assembly and Government Officials.
“We would like to thank Paul Frew, Michelle McIlveen and Michelle O’Neill for sponsoring the event and hopefully this is a turning point where people who have been injured or bereaved by covid vaccines will now get the support they require, a clear pathway to care and the horrible gaslighting will stop.”
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