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 24 November 2023 to Question 1672 on Respiratory Syncytial Virus: Vaccination, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation's statement of 1 September 2023 on a respiratory syncytial virus immunisation programme for infants and older adults.

Officials across the Department, the UK Health Security Agency, and NHS England are continuing to develop options and plans based on the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation’s advice, regarding expanded respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) immunisation programmes to protect infants and older adults.

This is taking into account clinical and operational factors, such as timing and coordination with other national immunisation programmes. As part of this work, the Government is engaging the market on its requirements for products that would enable RSV programmes to be implemented. A final decision on these programmes will be taken following the outcome of this process.