Questions Without Notice from Party Spokespeople

Part of 2. Questions to the Minister for Health and Social Services – in the Senedd at 2:52 pm on 23 October 2019.

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Photo of Vaughan Gething Vaughan Gething Labour 2:52, 23 October 2019

We regularly provide statements to reassure the public about the safety and efficacy of all the vaccines that are provided and the science and the evidence base behind them, as opposed to the suspicion and the growth of fake news in particular, a range of its proponents in a variety of different positions of influence. We're not in a position where we need to consider what Matt Hancock has talked about in terms of trying to make vaccination compulsory. I think that is very difficult to achieve and I think that may cause more harm than good for those who are already not having their children vaccinated, it may drive them even further away.

I think it is about how we persuade and provide evidence from people that they trust, which is why again investing in our earliest years and in services when people are pregnant really matters, about the level of trust that is provided and the assurance about what that means for doing the right thing for them and their children. We'll continue to do so. I think the challenge with wider public information campaigns is that often there's a very poor return. We need to understand where people get their information and who they're likely to be persuaded by to have the biggest return on any investment that we make.