Measles Cases

Lord Harris of Haringey Excerpts

Monday 22nd January 2024 Lords Chamber

[Lord Evans of Rainow (Con)]

I am grateful to my noble friend for that question. He is right that I cannot answer his specific point on the make-up of the vaccine, but I will write to him and place a copy in the Library. The MMR vaccine is perfectly safe; that is not to say that some individuals—a tiny proportion—might not have an allergic reaction or whatever to it, but it is very safe and can save lives.

[Lord Harris of Haringey (Lab)]

My Lords, 11 months ago there was a gathering in the Carlton Club of those who believed that vaccines are part of some great global conspiracy. This is an international problem of people undermining trust in medical solutions such as the MMR vaccine or Covid vaccinations. Have the Government been complacent about this, perhaps because so many of their right-wing friends support this nonsense?

[Lord Evans of Rainow (Con)]

I do not accept the premise of the noble Lord’s question. The Government are committed to tackling vaccine misinformation. This includes ongoing monitoring of vaccine uptake and attitudes towards vaccines by the UK Health Security Agency. The Department of Health has always worked alongside the NHS, other government departments and social media companies to develop innovative and effective ways to tackle anti-vaccine messaging and limit misinformation. The Government also work with the UKHSA and the NHS to support parents, to ensure that patients have access to up-to-date and accurate information on all vaccines delivered by the NHS, and to identify and rebut false information.