Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme: Covid-19

Wera Hobhouse Excerpts

Tuesday 6th September 2022 Westminster Hall

[Wera Hobhouse (Bath) (LD)]

My constituent did what she believed was right by getting vaccinated, but was one of those who had a blood clot after vaccination. The clot caused her to have a stroke and now she is unable to work. Her family are very concerned that she is going to be classed as not disabled enough to get a damages payout. Does the right hon. and learned Member agree that we need to look at these rare and few cases where people have suffered but might be falling through the net?

[Sir Jeremy Wright]

I am sorry to hear about the hon. Lady’s constituent and I agree with her. It is important that we do something differently for what she rightly says is a relatively small number of cases. If she bears with me, I will come to the exact point she makes about disablement, as it seems to be a deficiency of the scheme.

I have mentioned the VDPS and, of course, all help for those injured by vaccines is welcome. However, in my view there are three things wrong with the scheme and I will say something about each of them. The first is that it simply takes too long to pay out. The VDPS is a no-fault scheme, but it requires, not unreasonably, a causative link between vaccination and injury to be established. The problem is the time it seems to take to establish that link in the minds of the scheme’s administrators, even in cases such as that of the Scotts, where consultant opinions are clear and unequivocal. The Scotts’ application under the scheme was submitted on 3 June 2021, and was finally approved on 20 June 2022. According to the latest figures that I have—it may well be that the Minister has more up-to-date figures—there are 2,407 applications to the scheme related to covid-19 vaccines, and cases are currently being processed at the rate of 13 a month. At that rate, it would take more than 15 years to process all the cases.

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[Jim Shannon]

I thank the right hon. and learned Gentleman for his words of wisdom. Minister, there is an easy option sitting before us. I agree with the right hon. and learned Gentleman: in my book, I believe if we can do it the easy way then we should. Let us address the issue in a way that gives the Government less hassle, satisfies the needs and requests of our constituents, and ensures that we can move forward.

In terms of clotting, as of June this year there were 444 cases of blood clots out of 49 million doses of AstraZeneca given. There is still evidence that not all those were caused by the vaccine. Regardless of that, why should we not be speaking out on behalf of those who have been impacted? There is no amount of money in the world that can fill the void of loss—it cannot be measured in pounds and pennies—but we must do our best to ensure that the process of vaccine damage payments is timely and simple.

That is what we are asking for; I do not think we are asking for the world, but for something that can be done very easily—in my simplistic way of looking at things—by Government. They can do it in a way that can give succour right away and thus do away with the thoughts and process of litigation, which would be long, laborious and much more expensive.

[Wera Hobhouse]

Is the problem not the fact that those affected cannot go to court because of the civil immunity that the manufacturers and suppliers of the covid vaccine have received?

[Jim Shannon]

It certainly is. Things are never straightforward and there are complex issues. However, today our request is quite simply on behalf of those who have contacted the hon. Member for Central Ayrshire and each and every one of us. We have them in Northern Ireland as well; some of my constituents have been impacted. I think it is really important that we do that.