European Commission President drops major vaccine mandate clue as fourth wave crushes EU

A few months ago, this move would have been unthinkable. But now, more and more leaders are considering a radical step as Covid devastates the world.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has thrown her support behind vaccine mandates as the continent battles a crushing fourth wave. Picture: Emanuele Cremaschi/Getty Images

As a brutal fourth wave rips through the continent, a European leader has dropped the clearest hint yet that authorities might introduce a controversial rule that would have been unthinkable just a few short months ago.

Late last month, the World Health Organisation (WHO) issued a chilling warning for Europe, which remains “in the firm grip” of Covid.

The organisation predicted that the death toll on the continent could top 2.2 million this winter, with 700,000 fatalities expected in the coming months.

Since then, the new Omicron variant has emerged, sending shockwaves across the globe – but at the same time, vaccination rates across Europe have stalled, sparking fears of a catastrophe to come.

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Last month, Austria announced the extreme step of making Covid jabs mandatory across the nation by February 2022, with Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg telling CNN recently the “drastic step” was necessary in the wake of rampant vaccine hesitancy and “fake news”.

It sparked a wave of bitter protests against the mandates, but since then, a string of German leaders have spoken publicly of the likelihood of vaccine mandates being introduced there, with incoming chancellor Olaf Scholz saying he would like vaccine mandates in place by March.

Austria’s radical vaccine mandate sparked a wave of bitter protests. Picture: Gert Eggenberger/APA/AFP

And many nations in Europe and across the planet have already rolled out vaccine mandates for certain industries and sectors of the population, with Greece set to slap unvaxxed over-60s with fines after mid-January.

But now, the thorny issue of vaccine mandates has gone a step further, with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen making the bold claim that they may be necessary across the European Union in the near future.

Speaking publicly during a press conference on Wednesday, Dr von der Leyen, a former doctor, said it was time to “potentially think about mandatory vaccination” within the EU, arguing it was time to adopt a “common approach”.

She said the emerging threat of the Omimcron variant meant the planet faced a “race against time” to get as many people vaccinated as possible.

She stressed that while ultimately it was a decision for individual countries to make, she personally believed tougher measures may be necessary to increase the vaccination rate.

WHO predicts Europe will be hit by 700,000 Covid deaths within months. Picture: Emanuele Cremaschi/Getty Images

“If you’re asking me what my personal position is? Two or three years ago, I would never have thought to witness what we see right now, that we have this horrible pandemic, we have the vaccines, the lifesaving vaccines, but they are not being used adequately everywhere,” she said.

“And thus, these costs, of course, are enormous, or this is an enormous health cost coming along.”

She revealed that 150 million were currently unvaccinated across the continent.

“If you look at the numbers we have now, 77 per cent of the adults in the European Union are vaccinated, or if you take the whole population, it’s 66 per cent,” she said.

“And this means one-third of the European population is not vaccinated. These are 150 million people. This is a lot.

“Not each and everyone can be vaccinated, so there are very small children, for example, or people with special medical conditions, but the vast majority could.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said it was time to discuss vaccine mandates during a press conference on the Global Gateway. Picture: Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP

For that reason, Dr von der Leyen said it was “appropriate” to start discussing the radical measure.

“And therefore, I think it is understandable and appropriate to lead this discussion now,” she said.

“How we can encourage and potentially think about mandatory vaccination within the European Union – this needs discussion.

“This needs a common approach but it is a discussion that I think has to be led.”

It comes amid widespread concerns regarding the new Omicron variant, with cases already found in a string of countries, including Australia, after first being detected in southern Africa.

Despite the lack of information about the new strain, WHO has stated it believes current vaccines “will still prevent severe disease” among those with the Omicron variant.