WHO, JCVI and MHRA to give evidence to Lords committee on childhood vaccinations

On Monday, the House of Lords Childhood Vaccinations Committee will be hearing from two panels of witnesses. 

The first session with the World Health Organisation will focus on global trends in childhood vaccination. The second session will be with representatives from both the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. 

Giving evidence at 2:15pm will be: 

• Dr Roberta Pastore, Lead for Immunisation Programme Strengthening, Regional Office for Europe, World Health Organisation 

Questions the committee is likely to ask include: 

• What are the trends in global childhood vaccination uptake and what disparities exist? How might these trends develop into the future? 

• What are the key drivers of global trends in childhood vaccination rates; are these drivers consistent across different countries? 

• How do childhood vaccination services in England compare to those in other countries? Are there any examples of good practice that the UK Government could learn from? 

• How well do different countries build trust in childhood vaccination? 

• Some countries mandate or incentivise certain childhood vaccinations. How widespread are such approaches? What are the risks and benefits? 

Giving evidence at 3:15pm will be:  

• Professor Wei Shen Lim, Chair, Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation 

• Professor Shareen Doak, Deputy Director, Benefit-Risk Evaluation I, Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency 

Questions the committee is likely to ask include: 

• How safe and effective are the vaccines in the routine childhood vaccination schedule? 

• How robust are the processes for testing the safety and efficacy of vaccines in clinical trials, and of licensing vaccines for use? How could these processes be improved? 

• What are the JCVI processes for assessing and recommending changes to the routine childhood vaccination schedule? How could these processes be improved? 

• How effectively is the safety of childhood vaccinations monitored in the real world? How could this be improved? 

• How effectively are vaccine safety and efficacy communicated to the public? How could this be improved? 

The sessions will take place on Monday 22 June 2026 and can be followed live on Parliament TV.