Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, for what reasons Public Health England did not commence its cost effectiveness modelling for HPV vaccination for adolescent boys until 2015.

On the advice of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, Public Health England (PHE) agreed to analyse the impact and cost effectiveness of gender neutral human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccination using an HPV cervical screening model already being developed within PHE. This work was planned to follow the completion of a model to look at the cost-effectiveness of HPV vaccination of men who have sex with men in sexual health clinics. Quality assurance processes have led to a delay in completion of the HPV cervical screening model, which has delayed the commencement of the modelling work on adolescent boys.