Dear Constituent,

Thank you for contacting me about COVID-19 vaccinations for young people.

On Monday (13 September 2021), the Government made a statement outlining the extension of COVID-19 vaccinations to 12 to 15-year-olds.

Across the UK, 92 million vaccines have been administered and 80% of people over the age of 16 have now received two doses. I pay tribute to our NHS, primary and social care sector and all the volunteers involved in that fantastic effort. The vaccine programme has prevented over 112,000 deaths, more than 143,000 hospital admissions and 24 million infections.

Yet the threat of the delta variant means infection rates remain stubbornly high and the number of people being hospitalised with COVID-19 stands at around 1,000 each day.

Earlier this year, the UK’s medicines regulator approved COVID-19 vaccines supplied by Pfizer and Moderna for 12 to 17-year-olds. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency confirmed that both vaccines are safe and effective for this age group. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) subsequently recommended vaccination for all 16 and 17-year-olds and for 12 to 15-year-olds with serious underlying health conditions.

The JCVI, which advises Ministers on immunisation, recently concluded that while there are benefits to vaccinating all 12 to 15-year-olds, taken purely on health terms the benefit is finely balanced. It advised the Government to seek further views on the wider impacts of vaccinations, such as the benefits for children in education or the mental health benefits that come from people knowing that they are protected, from the UK’s Chief Medical Officers (CMOs).

The four UK CMOs consulted with clinical experts and public health professionals from across the country, such as the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health. The unanimous recommendation of the CMOs is to make a universal offer of one dose of the Pfizer vaccine to 12 to 15-year-olds.

I welcome the CMOs’ guidance and I am pleased that the Government has accepted their recommendation. Children have lost months in in-person learning and have spent weeks cut off from friends and family. I therefore particularly welcome the CMOs’ recognition of the importance of avoiding the disruption of being out of school in making this decision.

I understand that some people may have concerns about extending of vaccines to children. And Ministers must ensure that parents have all the facts and information they need. However, given that we know vaccines are safe and effective, I support this recommendation. Vaccinating children is a benefit to those children but will also reduce transmission, and in that respect, it is a benefit to wider society.

Yours Sincerely,

Peter Dowd MP