The MMR Vaccination – Who Decides?

A recent decision of the High Court has received considerable press attention.  It relates to two sisters aged 15 and 11, whose parents were at loggerheads as to whether or not the girls should receive the MMR vaccine.

The father, who was anxious for the vaccine to be given, eventually applied to Court for a determination of this specific issue under the provisions of the Children Act.  A particularly interesting factor was that the girls had indicated their support for their mother’s opposition to the vaccine.  A regular factor in children disputes of all kinds is the significance that the Court should place on the child’s own wishes and feelings.  Inevitably the older the child the more relevant their views will become and the more difficult for practical purposes to impose arrangements whether they be for residence, contact or specific issues of this kind against their will.

In this case, and notwithstanding that the oldest child was 15, the court decided that it was in the girls’ best interests for the vaccinations to be given. It was suggested that the girls’ stance may have been influenced by certain factors to include their mother’s concerns and worries and that such matters should not influence the Court whose paramount concern should always be the welfare of the children.  I am sure that this decision must have been very difficult for the Court to reach and it is one of those cases where there is likely to be criticism whatever decision is made.  For what it is worth, it is my view having read the more detailed report, that the decision was right, although I do speak with a predisposition to supporting the benefits of the MMR vaccine. However, where the Court feels able to ignore the clear wishes of children, particularly when they are 12 or above, it does present practical difficulties.  This is particularly the case where the decision imposed on the child may not have the support of the parent with day to day care, who is then left with the practical and emotional challenge of imposing on a reluctant child a decision which they are themselves opposed to.  It will be interesting to see whether this case has any influence on the Court when deciding more day to day disputes between parents with regard to issues such as contact where often the views of children are raised as important factors.