Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans, if any, they have to introduce the human papilloma virus vaccine for boys.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), the Government’s expert advisers on immunisation matters, has set up a human papillomavirus (HPV) sub-committee to consider a number of key issues around HPV vaccination, including vaccinating men who have sex with men (MSM) and potential extension of the current programme to include adolescent boys.

The HPV sub-committee will report its findings to the JCVI following consideration of studies by Public Health England on the impact and cost-effectiveness of extending HPV vaccination to MSM or adolescent boys. It is expected that the MSM modelling study will be completed at the end of 2014 at the earliest, and the adolescent boys modelling study will be completed at the end of 2015 at the earliest

The Department will consider carefully the advice from the JCVI once it has completed its assessment.