Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the meeting between the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Public Health and Prevention and the hon. Member for Christchurch on 5 November 2025, what progress has been made on possible reform to the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme for claims relating to Covid-19 vaccinations; and what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Budget on the affordability of proposals for change.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I am grateful for the Hon. Member's continued focus on this important issue, and for meeting with me on 5 November 2025.
I continue to actively review options for the reform of the scheme, and the Department is engaging with other Government departments as part of this process. Discussions have taken place on limitation period for court claims, following the meeting on 5 November 2025.
Any reforms would need to be prioritised as part of future business planning processes.
I am meeting with vaccine bereaved families in the coming weeks to provide them with a further update on this work.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the meeting between the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Public Health and Prevention and the hon. Member for Christchurch on 5 November 2025, what progress has been made on consulting with the Cabinet Office on increasing the limitation period for court claims relating to harm from Covid-19 vaccinations.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I am grateful for the Hon. Member's continued focus on this important issue, and for meeting with me on 5 November 2025.
I continue to actively review options for the reform of the scheme, and the Department is engaging with other Government departments as part of this process. Discussions have taken place on limitation period for court claims, following the meeting on 5 November 2025.
Any reforms would need to be prioritised as part of future business planning processes.
I am meeting with vaccine bereaved families in the coming weeks to provide them with a further update on this work.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the recent uptake of covid boosters.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
COVID-19 vaccination uptake figures are published regularly during the spring and winter campaigns, as part of the National flu and COVID-19 surveillance report, available at the following link:
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will extend the eligibility for free Covid vaccines to people with Respiratory Syncytial Virus in West Dorset constituency.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to protecting those most vulnerable to COVID-19 and the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) through vaccination, as guided by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The primary aim of the national COVID-19 and RSV vaccination programmes is the prevention of serious illness, resulting in hospitalisations and deaths.
Although RSV and COVID-19 can both cause severe disease, they differ in their epidemiology and pathology. As such, the population groups at higher risk of severe disease will not necessarily be the same for each pathogen.
The JCVI has advised that population immunity to COVID-19 has been increasing due to a combination of naturally acquired immunity, following recovery from infection, and vaccine-derived immunity. COVID-19 is now a relatively mild disease for most people, though it can still be unpleasant, with rates of hospitalisation and death from COVID-19 having reduced significantly since COVID-19 first emerged.
The focus of the JCVI advised programme has moved towards targeted vaccination of the two groups who continue to be at higher risk of serious disease, including mortality. These are the oldest adults and individuals who are immunosuppressed.
The Government accepted the JCVI advice for autumn 2025 and in line with the advice, a COVID-19 vaccination is being offered to the following groups:
- adults aged 75 years old and over;
- residents in care homes for older adults;
- individuals aged six months and over who are immunosuppressed.
In line with JCVI advice, RSV vaccination programmes were introduced in England in September 2024 to protect infants, via maternal vaccination, and older adults at greatest risk of harm from RSV infection.
As for all vaccination programmes, the JCVI keeps the evidence under regular review.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to conduct a review of JCVI eligibility criteria and to reinstate free Covid‑19 vaccinations for all clinically vulnerable people, in line with the existing approach to NHS flu vaccinations.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to protecting those most vulnerable to COVID-19 through vaccination, as guided by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The primary aim of the national COVID-19 vaccination programme remains the prevention of serious illness, resulting in hospitalisations and deaths, arising from COVID-19.
The JCVI has advised that population immunity to COVID-19 has been increasing due to a combination of naturally acquired immunity following recovery from infection and vaccine-derived immunity. COVID-19 is now a relatively mild disease for most people, though it can still be unpleasant, with rates of hospitalisation and death from COVID-19 having reduced significantly since COVID-19 first emerged.
The focus of the JCVI advised programme has moved towards targeted vaccination of the two groups who continue to be at higher risk of serious disease, including mortality. These are the oldest adults and individuals who are immunosuppressed.
The Government has accepted the JCVI advice for autumn 2025 and in line with the advice, a COVID-19 vaccination is being offered to the following groups:
- adults aged 75 years old and over;
- residents in care homes for older adults; and
- individuals aged six months and over who are immunosuppressed, as defined in the ‘immunosuppression’ sections of tables 3 or 4 in the COVID-19 chapter of the UK Health Security Agency Green Book.
Although seasonal flu and COVID-19 can both cause severe disease, they differ in their epidemiology and pathology. As such, the population groups at higher risk of severe disease will not necessarily be the same for each pathogen and the JCVI has considered each programme individually.
The JCVI keeps all vaccination programmes under review.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has he made of the potential benefits of increasing eligibility for free Covid vaccines to people with Respiratory Syncytial Virus in West Dorset constituency.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to protecting those most vulnerable to COVID-19 and the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) through vaccination, as guided by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The primary aim of the national COVID-19 and RSV vaccination programmes is the prevention of serious illness, resulting in hospitalisations and deaths.
Although RSV and COVID-19 can both cause severe disease, they differ in their epidemiology and pathology. As such, the population groups at higher risk of severe disease will not necessarily be the same for each pathogen.
The JCVI has advised that population immunity to COVID-19 has been increasing due to a combination of naturally acquired immunity, following recovery from infection, and vaccine-derived immunity. COVID-19 is now a relatively mild disease for most people, though it can still be unpleasant, with rates of hospitalisation and death from COVID-19 having reduced significantly since COVID-19 first emerged.
The focus of the JCVI advised programme has moved towards targeted vaccination of the two groups who continue to be at higher risk of serious disease, including mortality. These are the oldest adults and individuals who are immunosuppressed.
The Government accepted the JCVI advice for autumn 2025 and in line with the advice, a COVID-19 vaccination is being offered to the following groups:
- adults aged 75 years old and over;
- residents in care homes for older adults;
- individuals aged six months and over who are immunosuppressed.
In line with JCVI advice, RSV vaccination programmes were introduced in England in September 2024 to protect infants, via maternal vaccination, and older adults at greatest risk of harm from RSV infection.
As for all vaccination programmes, the JCVI keeps the evidence under regular review.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has he made of the potential benefits of increasing eligibility for free Covid vaccines to people with Respiratory Syncytial Virus.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to protecting those most vulnerable to COVID-19 and the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) through vaccination, as guided by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The primary aim of the national COVID-19 and RSV vaccination programmes is the prevention of serious illness, resulting in hospitalisations and deaths.
Although RSV and COVID-19 can both cause severe disease, they differ in their epidemiology and pathology. As such, the population groups at higher risk of severe disease will not necessarily be the same for each pathogen.
The JCVI has advised that population immunity to COVID-19 has been increasing due to a combination of naturally acquired immunity, following recovery from infection, and vaccine-derived immunity. COVID-19 is now a relatively mild disease for most people, though it can still be unpleasant, with rates of hospitalisation and death from COVID-19 having reduced significantly since COVID-19 first emerged.
The focus of the JCVI advised programme has moved towards targeted vaccination of the two groups who continue to be at higher risk of serious disease, including mortality. These are the oldest adults and individuals who are immunosuppressed.
The Government accepted the JCVI advice for autumn 2025 and in line with the advice, a COVID-19 vaccination is being offered to the following groups:
- adults aged 75 years old and over;
- residents in care homes for older adults;
- individuals aged six months and over who are immunosuppressed.
In line with JCVI advice, RSV vaccination programmes were introduced in England in September 2024 to protect infants, via maternal vaccination, and older adults at greatest risk of harm from RSV infection.
As for all vaccination programmes, the JCVI keeps the evidence under regular review.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will extend the eligibility for free Covid vaccines to people with Respiratory Syncytial Virus.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to protecting those most vulnerable to COVID-19 and the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) through vaccination, as guided by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The primary aim of the national COVID-19 and RSV vaccination programmes is the prevention of serious illness, resulting in hospitalisations and deaths.
Although RSV and COVID-19 can both cause severe disease, they differ in their epidemiology and pathology. As such, the population groups at higher risk of severe disease will not necessarily be the same for each pathogen.
The JCVI has advised that population immunity to COVID-19 has been increasing due to a combination of naturally acquired immunity, following recovery from infection, and vaccine-derived immunity. COVID-19 is now a relatively mild disease for most people, though it can still be unpleasant, with rates of hospitalisation and death from COVID-19 having reduced significantly since COVID-19 first emerged.
The focus of the JCVI advised programme has moved towards targeted vaccination of the two groups who continue to be at higher risk of serious disease, including mortality. These are the oldest adults and individuals who are immunosuppressed.
The Government accepted the JCVI advice for autumn 2025 and in line with the advice, a COVID-19 vaccination is being offered to the following groups:
- adults aged 75 years old and over;
- residents in care homes for older adults;
- individuals aged six months and over who are immunosuppressed.
In line with JCVI advice, RSV vaccination programmes were introduced in England in September 2024 to protect infants, via maternal vaccination, and older adults at greatest risk of harm from RSV infection.
As for all vaccination programmes, the JCVI keeps the evidence under regular review.
Asked by: Dan Aldridge (Labour - Weston-super-Mare)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the Autumn 2025 Covid-19 vaccination eligibility criteria on people with asthma; what consideration was given to including asthma as a qualifying condition for free Covid vaccination; and what assessment he has made of the affordability and pricing of privately purchased Covid vaccines for those no longer eligible for free vaccination.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to protecting those most vulnerable to COVID-19 through vaccination, as guided by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The primary aim of the national COVID-19 vaccination programme remains the prevention of serious illness, resulting in hospitalisations and deaths, arising from COVID-19.
The JCVI has advised that population immunity to COVID-19 has increased due to a combination of naturally acquired immunity following recovery from infection and vaccine-derived immunity. COVID-19 is now a relatively mild disease for most people, though it can still be unpleasant, with rates of hospitalisation and death from COVID-19 having reduced significantly since COVID-19 first emerged.
The focus of the JCVI advised programme has therefore moved towards targeted vaccination of the two groups who continue to be at higher risk of serious disease, including mortality. These are the oldest adults and individuals who are immunosuppressed.
The Government has accepted the JCVI advice for autumn 2025 and in line with the advice, a COVID-19 vaccination is being offered to the following groups:
As with other United Kingdom vaccination programmes, the JCVI’s advice on eligibility for COVID-19 vaccination carefully considers the evidence on the risk of illness, serious disease, or death as a consequence of infection, in specific groups, as well as cost-effectiveness analysis. Further detail can be found at the following link:
The JCVI keeps all vaccination programmes under review.
As with other vaccines provided privately, the availability and price of COVID-19 vaccines provided through the private market is a matter for the companies concerned. All those eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccination this autumn through the National Health Service, in line with advice by the independent expert JCVI, are encouraged to take up this offer. The national programme launched on 1 October 2025 and runs until 31 January 2026.
Asked by: Dan Aldridge (Labour - Weston-super-Mare)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to a) issue guidance or b) take action to prevent excessive charges for privately provided COVID-19 vaccinations.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
As with other vaccines provided privately, the availability and price of COVID-19 vaccines available through the private market is a matter for the companies concerned. All those eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccination this autumn through the National Health Service, in line with advice by the independent expert Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, are encouraged to take up this offer. The national programme launched on 1 October 2025 and runs until 31 January 2026.