Lack of trust in public officials key in Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy, research shows

The finding from the Universities of Birmingham and Leeds said hesitancy was greatest among poorer people and those from ethnic minority backgrounds.

It has led for calls from the academics for the Government to review public health messaging with a focus on tailoring advice to this sector and boost uptake.

The study showed during the period immediately before Britain’s vaccine rollout in December 2020, more than 11 per cent of UK adults said they were unwilling to take a vaccine.

But this hesitancy wasn’t spread evenly across the population and was lowest among white people, with nine per cent saying they didn’t want a jab. In comparison, half of black people said they didn’t want to receive the vaccine, and hesitancy was also high in other non-white groups: 28 per cent of south Asian and 17 per cent of other Asian respondents said they were unwilling to be vaccinated.

Siddhartha Bandyopadhyay, professor of economics from the University of Birmingham and co-author of the study, said: “Building trust in the public sector and government are essential to improving uptake amongst groups who are most at risk from Covid. Public sector officials along with government need to look at new and innovative ways to engage with citizens as well as be transparent in their communication to refute fake news related to vaccines.

"Similarly, it is imperative that politicians and officials maintain high ethical standards during times of emergency like the pandemic when there is reduced oversight. It hasn't helped in the UK where we see news of parties being held at Downing Street in the middle of lockdowns along with reports of the government breaking the law in the awarding of PPE contracts which has only lowered public trust in officials.

"During a period when new Covid-19 variants are on the horizon, the focus should be on clear public health messages around vaccination, rather than what is making headlines in this regard."