To ask the Minister of Health, given the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) keeps its advice on seasonal flu vaccination programmes under regular review, to detail (i) what contingency plans are in place should the JCVI change its guidelines; and (ii) to detail within what timeframe could his Department respond to any change.

The JCVI aims to provide a clear framework for the annual influenza (flu) vaccination programme in advance, meeting every June and October to provide its advice on the following year's flu vaccination programme. This allows sufficient time for policy considerations, approvals, and procurement processes to be completed for the following year.

The JCVI does, however, retain the flexibility to adapt its advice based on the dynamic nature of flu viruses and emerging scientific evidence. On rare occasions, the JCVI may change its flu advice at short notice in response to emerging evidence, significant changes in the epidemiological situation (e.g., emergence of a new, highly transmissible or virulent strain), or issues with vaccine supply or availability.

The timescales within which my Department can respond to changing JCVI advice will vary depending on when the advice is published and the specifics of the advice. For example, during the 2023/24 programme the influenza and COVID-19 campaigns were implemented over a shorter condensed period in response to the emergence of a new COVID-19 variant.

The influenza strains in vaccine changes from year to year and therefore sufficient quantities of flu vaccine are purchased based on the JCVI advice issued in October the previous year. This is to avoid excess vaccine being wasted at the end of each flu season. Should the JCVI recommend an expansion of the current flu vaccination programme at this late stage, the PHA, which manages the supply of vaccines for the programme, would balance availability with demand via ordering controls, allowing for rapid adjustments to distribution. However if, the purchase of additional influenza vaccine stock was necessary, the PHA, (along with other UK administrations), would need to seek this from manufacturers at short notice.