SCOTLAND can and should vaccinate children between the ages of 12 and 15, and does not have to wait until being given the go-ahead by a body advising the UK Government, according to a public health academic.
Professor Andrew Watterson, of Stirling University, said the advice given by the Joint Committee on Vaccinations and Immunisations was “not binding” for the Scottish Government, though it was for the UK Government.
He spoke out after the weekend saw new daily Covid cases reach a record high of 7113, according to the official figures released on Sunday.
The Scottish Government’s statistics published yesterday showed that there were a further 3893 cases in the following 24 hours.
Watterson told BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme that the surge in new cases was predictable after most Covid restrictions were lifted on August 9, just a few days before schools returned from the summer holidays.
READ MORE: Scotland will need new restrictions to curb record Covid cases, says top expert
He blamed the easing of restrictions generally, the slowing of the vaccine programme among younger Scots and the return of schools for the high case numbers.
“It’s amazing that we did not see this coming,” he said. “It’s wholly predictable.”
He added: “I think the Scottish Government has moved away from a fairly effective suppression policy earlier on.”
On vaccinating 12-to-15-year-olds, he said: “If we look at what’s going on elsewhere, the Centre for Disease Control, the US Government Agency – very cautious – it says that vaccination with 12-to-15 year olds is okay.
“Denmark is doing it, France is doing it, Austria is doing it. Switzerland started its programme in July.”
He added: “There are significant arguments for pressing ahead and not waiting for JCVI, which of course in Scotland we don’t have to.
“It’s a binding approach in England but not in Scotland.”
Watterson's comments come several weeks after the JCVI advised that only vulnerable groups of children and those living with a vulnerable adult (such as a parent with cancer) should be offered the Covid vaccine.
But several organisations in Scotland incuding the teachers union the EIS say all 12 to 15 year olds should be offered the jag.
Chief Medical Officer Gregor Smith wrote last month to the JCVI to ask for more details about their reasons for not advising health boards to offer the jab to all 12 to 15 year olds.
The UK medicines regulator the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) approved as safe the use of the Pfizer vaccine for over 12s earlier this. Their decision was welcomed by the First Ministerr.
In addition to the countries listed by Watterson, the Republic of Ireland last month began rolling out its vaccine programme to over 12s. The move was noted by the FM.
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