Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Covid-19 Vaccine: Ethnic Minority Communities

Wednesday 7 July 2021 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 3 Partly answered 0 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Government took unprecedented measures to promote vaccine uptake among ethnic minorities, including establishing vaccination centers at religious venues.
  • Felicity Buchan praised the Al-Manaar mosque initiative in North Kensington for its effectiveness in administering vaccines and conducting multilingual information sessions.
  • Concerns about vaccine impact on fertility among ethnic minority women were addressed by emphasizing the safety of the vaccines and working with health experts to encourage vaccination.

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Questions & Answers

Q1 Duncan Baker
NHS
Context

The question follows the government's efforts to increase covid-19 vaccine uptake among diverse groups, particularly focusing on measures targeted at ethnic minorities.

Question

What recent steps has the Government taken to increase covid-19 vaccine uptake among ethnic minority communities?

Answer from Kemi Badenoch

My third quarterly report to the Prime Minister on covid disparities summarises unprecedented measures taken to promote vaccine uptake among ethnic minorities. This includes establishing vaccination centres at around 50 different religious venues, with many more acting as pop-up sites, and an NHS partnership with the Caribbean & African Health Network, which co-produced a toolkit to increase vaccine confidence and uptake.

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Q2 Felicity Buchan
NHS Religion & Faith
Context

The MP highlights a successful model for encouraging vaccination in diverse communities, involving the Al-Manaar mosque in North Kensington.

Question

Does my hon. Friend agree that the initiative at the Al-Manaar mosque in North Kensington, which has administered over 750 vaccines and conducted vaccine information sessions in multiple languages, is an excellent model for encouraging vaccination?

Answer from Kemi Badenoch

I do agree. I thank my hon. Friend for her engagement on this issue and for effectively representing a very diverse constituency with complex needs. Initiatives such as the one mentioned and the NHS's plan for Ramadan, including twilight jabbing, all help to build trust, increase vaccine confidence and tackle misinformation.

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Q3 Duncan Baker
NHS Women & Equalities
Context

Care home operators in the MP's constituency have raised concerns among ethnic minority groups, particularly women, about potential impacts of the vaccine on their fertility.

Question

From speaking to care home operators in my constituency, I know that there is concern among ethnic minority groups, and particularly women, about their fertility chances being affected by taking up the vaccine. What reassurances can my hon. Friend give to those ladies that their fertility will not be affected, and that it is entirely safe to take up the vaccine?

Answer from Kemi Badenoch

I should start by reiterating that the covid-19 vaccines are safe and there is no evidence that they affect fertility. We are working with Professor Jacqueline Dunkley-Bent, the Chief Midwifery Officer in England, and others such as Media Medics, Dr Hazel Wallace and Dr Philippa Kaye, to encourage women to be vaccinated.

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