Third of Reform UK’s council leaders have expressed vaccine-sceptic views | Reform UK
Reform A third of the UK’s council leaders across the country have expressed vaccine skepticism, openly questioning the public health measures keeping millions safe.
Leaders of four of the 12 councils to which Reform is responsible, or the largest party – Kent, Worcestershire, Warwickshire and Durham – are among those in the party who have openly criticized vaccines.
Health Secretary Zubir Ahmed, an NHS transplant and vascular surgeon, described his remarks as “dangerous and completely irresponsible”, saying politicians skeptical of vaccines risked exposing children and vulnerable people to harm.
This came after cardiologist Aseem Malhotra, a controversial doctor, used his main stage speech at Reform’s conference in September to make claims that the Covid vaccine had caused cancer in the royal family, which was immediately condemned.
Malhotra, a senior adviser to vaccine skeptic US health secretary Robert F. Kennedy, has long been publicly hesitant about Covid vaccines, claiming the vaccines pose a greater threat than the virus itself. has been debunked many times by fact-checkers.
David Bull, Reform’s chairman, described Malhotra as the man who “worked with me to write Reform UK’s health policy”. But vaccine hesitancy appears to be spreading throughout the party. Nigel Faragedeputy, Richard Ticeand Conservative defector Danny Kruger all raised suspicion.
Linden Kemkaran, the first Reform council leader to run the city county council, said in September that the party It should be investigated whether Covid vaccines are linked to cancer, Although there is no medical evidence to support this idea.
He told Times Radio that Reform was “not afraid to discuss issues that other people have decided should be silenced” and that the link was “something we need to talk about, absolutely”.
Jo Monk, the party’s leader in Worcestershire, He told the council meeting He sparked concerns among opposition councilors in November when he said he accepted the role vaccines play in preventing disease but was “ambivalent about certain vaccines”.
“My perspective is shaped by my personal experiences, my reactions to vaccines, and my conversations with a variety of medical practitioners who have varying views on this topic,” he said.
George Finch, leader of Warwickshire county council Latest shared doubts about chickenpox vaccine He said on LBC radio in August that “chickenpox parties have wiped it out” and that the virus was “part of life”.
Government ministers hope the addition of the chickenpox vaccine to the childhood immunization program will protect some young people from serious complications of the virus. It could also reduce the amount of time parents take off work to care for their infected children.
Andrew Husband, leader of Reform in Durham county council. he said in a deleted post In October 2023, X said vaccines were “horrible, like all crimes against humanity.”
Ahmed, who also works for the NHS in Glasgow, condemned the remarks. “These are dangerous and deeply irresponsible comments from senior Reform politicians in the UK,” he said.
“Vaccines save lives, and politicians who cast doubt on them could expose children and vulnerable people to harm. At a time when the NHS is under huge pressure, sowing distrust in proven public health measures is reckless.
“The British people deserve better than conspiracy theories, snake oil and misinformation from people in power.”
Amid growing vaccine skepticism, public health chiefs have launched national campaigns to increase vaccinations, particularly in childhood, as concerns grow about the resurgence of serious diseases such as measles in England and the number of cases falling.
A Reform UK spokesperson said: “Reform UK strongly supports proven vaccine programs that protect public health. But as our councilors have highlighted, forcing blind compliance with every vaccine without question or evidence undermines trust, sabotages successful rollouts and allows misinformation to spread.”
