Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2022 to Question 142428, what national awareness campaigns are being conducted to alert the public to the MHRA statement that in a minority of cases the risks of the vaccines outweigh the benefits; and what public information is available to enable individual patients to assess whether their own circumstances and those of their children are such that the risk of having the vaccine outweighs the benefit.

Vaccines are the best way to protect people from COVID-19. The expected benefits of the vaccines in preventing infection and serious complications associated with COVID-19 outweigh any currently known side effects in the majority of patients. Those with particular risks, such as an allergy to particular vaccine components, should seek specific advice from their doctor or from the local immunisation or health protection team.

If an individual has more general concerns about COVID-19 vaccination, there is a variety of materials available on NHS.UK and GOV.UK. A relevant health professional can also provide additional advice regarding the vaccine. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) continues to communicate its assessment of the risks and benefits of the vaccines. The MHRA publishes information on COVID-19 vaccine safety which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-vaccine-adverse-reactions