Health Secretary Javid Rules Out Mandatory Vaccines for Britons

LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 20: Britain's Health Secretary Sajid Javid speaks during a press
Toby Melville - WPA Pool/Getty Images
Peter Caddle

British Health Secretary Sajid Javid has ruled out the possibility of compulsory coronavirus vaccinations being implemented in the UK.

In response to whether Britain would be following the likes of Austria in mandating vaccines, Mr Javid bluntly stated “no” on Sunday.

“It is up to Austria, other countries, to decide what they need to do. We are fortunate that in this country, although we have vaccine hesitancy, it is a lot lower than we are seeing in other places,” Javid told the BBC’s Andrew Marr programme.

The health secretary went on to emphasize that getting vaccinated against the Chinese coronavirus should be a “positive choice” that people should be encouraged to take, rather than being coerced by the state.

Although he defended the government’s decision to make the vaccine compulsory for those working within healthcare professions, he said that there are no plans to expand the requirement to the general public.

“I don’t think that is something we would ever look at,” Javid concluded.

While Secretary Javid’s statement regarding the British government’s position on mandatory vaccination was rather clear, the British government has a history of flip-flopping on coronavirus policy throughout the pandemic.

In September, the government appeared to U-turn on the implementation of Covid passports for use within the UK, with Javid stating that plans for the passes had been scrapped after British Vaccine Minister Nadhim Zahawi had defended their implementation within the House of Commons.

The two men have also previously contradicted as to whether the government would allow 12- to 15-year-olds to choose to get vaccinated against the wishes of their parents.

While England has so far avoided the imposition of vaccine passports, the government has said that it would introduce them in the winter months should cases rise and trigger the so-called ‘Plan B’. Vaccine passports have since been implemented on a local level within Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

The Health Secretary’s latest comments come after it was announced that Austria would be making the jab compulsory for the general public early next year.

The Austrian government stated that it would begin crafting the legal framework in order to introduce mandatory vaccination by February 1st, 2022. Those who refuse to be vaccinated against the virus will face heavy fines and potential prison sentences.

A nationwide lockdown within the country has also been introduced, with the entire population being confined mostly to their homes for the next 20 days, with unvaccinated individuals ordered to remain locked down indefinitely, even after the nationwide lockdown has elapsed.

There have also been growing calls within Germany to implement a similar mandate, with the Prime Minister of the state of Bavaria, Markus Söder, saying that he believed the country “will not be able to avoid compulsory vaccination”.

The German Health Minister, Jens Spahn, has stated that the nation faces a “national emergency” regarding Covid-19 and that the Government were facing a “situation where we can’t rule anything out.”

The imposition of mandatory vaccines and the reintroduction of lockdowns have resulted in widespread protests across Europe, with chaotic riots being witnessed in The Netherlands.

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