Covid vaccines for children as young as 12 are already being given in countries including the US and Canada.
But in the UK approval has yet to be given for vaccination of those under the age of 16 against coronavirus.
With reports that secondary school pupils may be offered the jabs after the summer holidays, we look at when and if children should be immunised.
The Scottish Government’s vaccine deployment plan states that the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) is considering evidence on the risk to children of coronavirus, the role they play in transmission and the safety and efficacy of vaccines.
A government spokeswoman said: “We are providing the vaccine to people on a priority basis as set out by the independent expert clinicians and scientists on the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation.
“We will continue to review our approach to the vaccination programme in line with JCVI advice.”
Earlier this month, JCVI deputy chairman Professor Anthony Harnden told Channel 4 News: “We will not be recommending vaccinations for children unless there are very solid reasons to do so.”
Which under-18s have been vaccinated?
Already some 16 and 17-year-olds have been vaccinated, where they are frontline health and social care workers, unpaid carers or have underlying health conditions.
A ‘tiny’ number of children at very high risk of serious illness from Covid – such as those with severe neuro-disabilities – have also been offered vaccines, in line with JCVI advice.
What stage are trials at?
Pfizer-BioNTech – whose vaccine is most likely to be offered to children – announced in March that tests among 12 to 15-year-olds demonstrated 100% efficacy and robust antibody responses. The firm is also conducting studies for children aged six months to 11 years old.
Results of Moderna tests in children as young as 12 are expected within the next few weeks, but testing of the AstraZeneca vaccine on children remains paused due to concern about blood clots.
Algeria was the first country to approve use of the Pfizer vaccine for children, followed by Canada and the US, where 600,000 doses have been given to 12 to 17-year-olds.
Will secondary school pupils get jab?
According to The Sunday Times, health officials are drawing up plans to offer the Pfizer vaccine to secondary school pupils after the summer holidays.
A rollout in schools would depend on advice expected from the JCVI, it said.
Pointing to predictions of a third wave of Covid after restrictions are lifted in England on June 21, JCVI committee member Professor Adam Finn told the newspaper that a significant increase in infection would make vaccinating children a priority to prevent further school closures.
Is UK approval of a vaccine for children expected?
Public health expert Professor Linda Bauld, of Edinburgh University, reckons it is “likely” the vaccine will be approved for teenagers by the JCVI and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) after the end of July.
She said: “There isn’t any reason why the UK wouldn’t approve it for use in teens given we’ve got good quality trial data from Pfizer showing that it is safe and effective in terms of preventing infection and disease in children.
“Whether it’s a priority in the context of the pandemic in the UK, whether they decide that that is a priority for us, I just don’t think we’re there yet.”
Should children be vaccinated?
Teenagers are not considered a major contributor to the pandemic in terms of infection spread and the risk of illness, and Prof Bauld said: “Some people are opposed to vaccinating children and teens on the basis that the risks might outweigh the benefits. If they don’t get unwell why would you give them a vaccine?”
If trials show vaccines are safe and effective for younger children, she said: “You may see some countries like the US and Canada approving, and they will undoubtedly be ahead of us on that.”
In countries where half of the population is under the age of 18, vaccinating children may be required to get on top of the pandemic, she said.
“But the UK is not one of those countries.”
Is it ethical to vaccinate children in the UK?
There’s also the ethical question of giving vaccines to children in countries like the UK while other nations don’t have enough to protect key workers.
Quoting statistics given by her colleague Prof Devi Sridhar in BBC World Service The Documentary podcast, Prof Bauld said: “If you have 1,000 people in the world, about 150 of them have had a vaccine first dose but in sub-Saharan Africa if you have 1,000 people eight of them have had a first dose.
“So the vaccine inequities are really significant.
“For us to rush ahead and vaccinate teenagers when the health professionals in lower and middle income countries haven’t had a first dose, ethically that’s problematic.”
