Do not make COVID vaccination a requirement for health and social care workers
- Parliament:
- 2019–24
- Signatures:
- 13,387
- Responded:
- 14 Feb 2022
- Department:
- Department of Health and Social Care
The petition
The Government should not make vaccination against COVID a requirement for frontline health and social care workers. We believe this is contrary to basic human rights to decide whether to receive medical treatment based on personal choice and conscience.
Many people do not want the vaccine for a number of reasons. Also the manufacturers are indemnified from liability for any side effects arising from the taking the vaccine. It is unacceptable that health and social care workers are being required to be vaccinated in order to do their jobs, when they would not even be entitled to compensation from the manufacturers for any adverse effects.
The government's response
On 31 Jan 2022, Government announced it intends to revoke vaccination as a condition of deployment in health and social care settings regulations, subject to consultation and Parliamentary process.
On 31 January 2022, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care announced the government’s intention to revoke the regulations making vaccination a condition of deployment in health and social care settings. This is subject to consultation and Parliamentary process.
You can view his statement here: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/oral-statement-on-vaccines-as-a-condition-of-deployment and accompanying press notice: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/consultation-on-removing-vaccination-as-a-condition-of-deployment-for-health-and-social-care-staff
The associated consultation response is now live, accessible here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/revoking-vaccination-as-a-condition-of-deployment-across-all-health-and-social-care. This will run until 11:45pm on 16 February 2022.
Department for Health and Social Care