HPV Vaccinations for MSM

Jim Shannon Excerpts

Tuesday 7th June 2016 Westminster Hall

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

Thank you, Mr Hollobone, and it is a pleasure to be able to speak in the debate.

I congratulate the hon. Member for Finchley and Golders Green (Mike Freer) on securing a debate on such an important issue. He has been a stalwart speaker on the issue in this Parliament and the previous one. He never lets his subject matter fall, and I thank him for his commitment and his energy.

It is good to see the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for Denton and Reddish (Andrew Gwynne), in his place again. It is also especially nice to see the Minister in her place again—she is spending a great deal of her afternoon in Westminster Hall, but it is always a pleasure to have her here. I look forward to her response to this debate.

For years, often due to stigma and attitudes, the issue was ignored, so it is welcome that we can now give it the attention that it deserves, not only in Parliament, as today and in the past, but in all walks of life, because it is now part of national conversations on advancing healthcare. As the Democratic Unionist party health spokesperson at Westminster, I am pleased to participate in the debate, to encourage and support the hon. Member for Finchley and Golders Green in what he is talking about today, and to comment on what we have done in Northern Ireland, as I always do in such debates, hopefully adding to our general knowledge of the subject.

Genital warts are the most common viral sexually transmitted infection and are caused by the human papilloma virus. In September 2008, Northern Ireland introduced an HPV vaccination programme targeting 12 and 13-year-old girls in schools. It primarily vaccinated against HPV 16 and 18, which are associated with more than 70% of cervical cancers. From September 2012, 12 and 13-year-old girls were offered the quadrivalent vaccine, which protects against not only types 16 and 18, but types 6 and 11, which are mainly associated with the majority of genital wart viruses. It is expected that rates of first episodes of genital warts will be positively impacted by the introduction of the HPV vaccination programme.

In men, there is no reliable test for HPV infection. As the hon. Gentleman said, it is often difficult to diagnose, and there are no symptoms for high-risk HPV. People who are known to be at a high risk of having anal HPV and of developing anal cancer may be offered an anal smear, but nothing goes beyond that. It is frustrating to have some steps in the health process, but no steps to take things to the next stage and to do what the hon. Gentleman said. That is why we are having the debate today and why it is critical for men to start receiving equality with women in terms of the protection offered against HPV by the health service. Given the higher risk of HPV infection associated with men who have sex with men, surely the provision of a vaccine is a no-brainer.

In November 2015, following a review of the evidence, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation published a position statement recommending the introduction of a vaccination programme for men who have sex with men, are aged up to 45, and attend genitourinary and HIV clinics. Some steps forward have been taken, but larger steps are needed, with more ground being covered.

Since the JCVI recommendations, and in line with them, the Welsh and Scottish Governments have announced that they will roll out vaccination programmes. I hope that the Department of Health in Northern Ireland will follow suit—the matter is devolved, as the Minister knows—and that men throughout the United Kingdom will get the long-overdue support that they deserve. It is about fairness, and when there is clear evidence that a section of the population might be at particular risk of something, appropriate action should and must be taken.

Continued monitoring of results is also necessary to ensure that the recommendations, when implemented, have the desired results, and that any changes or extensions to the plans can be made to ensure the most full and proper protection available is afforded to all those affected. To conclude, developments are long overdue. The debate has been welcome and an opportunity to highlight the issue—I congratulate the hon. Gentleman again. The fact that a goodly number of Members are participating is an indication that we, too, want to see change. It is about seeing the plans implemented and ensuring that the proposals work well in practice.