Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the costs associated with responding to outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases in 2025–26; whether they collect data on the costs of vaccine procurement and deployment, and outbreak response by disease; and, if so, whether they intend to publish this information.

We have established a programme that will, alongside closer working and a safe transfer checklist, help to ensure that integrated care boards (ICBs) are ready to take on their new responsibilities for vaccination from April 2027. We will also ensure there is appropriate accountability for vaccination services after the responsibility for their commissioning is delegated to ICBs. Work is ongoing and aligned to the merger of the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England.

No changes in the current reporting frameworks in this area are planned, but we keep all such matters under regular review.

The Department does not collect data on the costs of responding to outbreaks of vaccine-preventable infectious disease, but the methodology for assessing the cost-effectiveness of vaccination programmes routinely accounts for benefits such as avoided National Health Service and social care costs, as well as improved health outcomes.