Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to provide funding for research into covid-19 vaccine efficacy among all types of blood cancer.

As part of the COVID-19 Immunity National Core Study, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) is providing initial funding of £1.8 million for 12 months towards the OCTAVE study, examining the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines in clinically at-risk groups and £3 million towards a new research call to support projects investigating COVID-19 vaccine responses and immune failure. UKRI is also supporting the COVID-19 Data and Connectivity National Core Studies Programme with an investment of up to £15.2 million, which will enable studies including the evaluation of vaccine uptake and efficacy across all populations, including people with blood cancer.