Boris Johnson urges social medial firms to block anti-vaxx fake news

Prime minister Boris Johnson is planning to ask social media sites to do more to stop the spread of articles in support of the growing anti-vaccination movement.

The move comes after more than 230 cases of measles were reported in the first quarter of 2019. The UK was granted measles free status by the WHO in 2017 – a status that has now been lost.  Unicef reports that over half a million children in the UK had not been vaccinated against measles, mumps and rubella (the MMR vaccine) between 2010  and 2017. The NHS target being proposed by Johnson for the vaccine uptake rate is 95%, as currently, only around 87% of children receive both doses of the MMR vaccine.

More than 230 cases of measles were reported in the first quarter of 2019

The increasing number of children not receiving routine vaccinations has been blamed on the growing prevalence of anti-vaccination messages on social media. Johnson’s idea is to call a summit of social media companies in order to discuss how to halt the spread of misleading anti-vaccination information and promote only accurate information about vaccines.

Johnson has stated that he will not go so far as to enforce mandatory vaccination – a policy that has not been ruled out by the health secretary but has proven controversial amongst even those who are pro-vaccine. Johnson aims to outline plans for the UK to regain its measles free status.

The increasing number of children not receiving routine vaccinations has been blamed on the growing prevalence of anti-vaccination messages on social media

“The UK generally has a great record on fighting measles, but for the first time we’re suddenly going in the wrong direction,” said the PM whilst visiting a hospital in the south-west. “I’m afraid people have just been listening to that superstitious mumbo-jumbo on the internet, all that anti-vax stuff, and thinking that the MMR vaccine is a bad idea. That’s wrong, please get your kids vaccinated.”

Johnson also called out parents as being ‘complacent’ towards ensuring their children are protected from the disease.

“I’m afraid people have just been listening to that superstitious mumbo-jumbo on the internet, all that anti-vax stuff, and thinking that the MMR vaccine is a bad idea. That’s wrong, please get your kids vaccinated”

Many measles cases have shown links to travel within Europe, where the disease is becoming more prevalent, and large public events such as music festivals. The measles virus generally presents with a fever and a skin rash and is often fatal in children. Over 100,000 people die each year due to the disease, with most fatalities being in children under five.

Opposition to the MMR vaccine began in 1998 when the disgraced doctor Andrew Wakefield published a paper in the respected journal Lancet. In the now redacted paper, Wakefield reported links between the MMR vaccine and autism in children, capitalising on the fact that little was known about the causes of the condition at the time, and that in autistic children, symptoms only usually develop around the same time as they receive the MMR vaccination. The paper has since been disregarded as blatant fraud by the medical community, and Wakefield is no longer permitted to practise medicine – the ultimate disgrace in the medical community.

The paper has since been disregarded as blatant fraud by the medical community, and Wakefield is no longer permitted to practise medicine – the ultimate disgrace in the medical community

However, the paper sparked a widespread conspiracy and seeded ideas in the minds of conspiracy theorists around the world. The anti-vaccination movement is growing rapidly, and Wakefield is now regarded as something of a celebrity in anti-vax circles, going on to direct a film, Vaxxed, which accused the CDC of covering up a link between ingredients contained in vaccines to autism. Anti-vaxxers use the platform of social media to spread their rhetoric and recruit new followers, especially parents, to their cause. Assisting the growth of this is the adoption of anti-vax ideas by certain celebrities, including actors Jim Carrey, Robert de Niro, and Charlie Sheen. Many celebrities use their large amount of social media followers to spread anti-vaccination material online.

Health secretary Matt Hancock has said that those advocating against vaccines have “blood on their hands”, implying that the anti-vaccination movement is responsible for the deaths of children, and also called anti-vaxxers morally reprehensible and deeply irresponsible. Hancock has said he is not against the idea of mandatory vaccinations.

Health secretary Matt Hancock has said that those advocating against vaccines have “blood on their hands”

Johnson’s plans to ask social media sites to help block the spread of anti-vaccination information is a step towards stopping the movement in its tracks. However, with some medical experts claiming that the government is to blame for the reduced uptake of vaccines, perhaps more needs to be done within parliament to ensure our population is adequately vaccinated against dangerous diseases.