Should a coronavirus vaccine be compulsory?

The mandatory introduction of face masks in shops and a ban on families and friends from different households meeting in parts of northern England at a time when death rates and critical care admissions with Covid-19 are low, appears, on the surface at least, hard to explain. The original reason for lockdown – to protect the NHS – seems to have been replaced by weaker reasons to impose recurrent restrictions. This is worrying, not least because of the possibility that the Government could broaden out this approach of introducing policies based on low-grade evidence. Could it do the same in mandating vaccinations before their effectiveness and safety profiles have been definitively determined?

Section 45E of the Public Health Control of Diseases Act of 1984, currently protects against mandating vaccines even during outbreaks here in the UK. However, in this environment, the Act begins to look precarious, particularly when society may consider repealing such laws to escape the burden