Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Markham on 29 June 2023 (HL8408), what reasons they have identified for the fall in seasonal flu vaccine uptake in NHS Trust-based frontline healthcare workers in England for 2022 to 2023 compared with 2021 to 2022.

The Government is committed to protecting people most vulnerable to seasonal flu through vaccination as guided by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation. Feedback from regions was sought by NHS England in May 2023 with trusts to explore the reasons for a reduction in seasonal flu vaccine uptake in National Health Service-based frontline healthcare workers from 2022 to 2023 compared with 2021 to 2022.

This work identified that the fall arose because of vaccine fatigue amongst staff following numerous vaccination campaigns over the last two years. Some staff also reported ‘choosing’ a winter vaccination and favouring COVID-19 over flu vaccination.