COVID-19 vaccines (FOI)

Request

Under freedom of information I would like to know how well the COVID vaccine is working. I know there is a large and sustained increase in hospital patients.

My questions are:

A

Are these people in hospital (timeframe to be in-patients since vaccinations were available) all vaccinated against COVID and how many vaccinations have they had.

B

If they are vaccinated but not necessarily booster vaccinated that informs me the booster is necessary, when will the next booster be available.

C

If they are vaccinated and had boosters that informs me the vaccinations don’t work and suggest a waste of public money. Please confirm that is a reasonable conclusion.

D

In the absence of any data please confirm how I can tell if the government and their civil servants are performing their roles adequately.

Response

A

Are these people in hospital (timeframe to be in-patients since vaccinations were available) all vaccinated against COVID and how many vaccinations have they had.

The latest report on hospital admissions and vaccine status was published on www.gov.je on 21st January 2022. As the information is publicly available Article 23 (Information accessible to the applicant by other means) of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 has been applied.

R Vaccine status of COVID19 patients in Jersey General Hospital.pdf (gov.je)

Work is ongoing to produce an updated report within the next 12 weeks. Article 36 (future publication) of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 has therefore been applied.

B

If they are vaccinated but not necessarily booster vaccinated that informs me the booster is necessary, when will the next booster be available.

As of Friday 11th March 2022, spring boosters are being offered to the following vulnerable groups as advised by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI):

• all Islanders aged 75 and over
• immunosuppressed Islanders aged 12 and over
• residents in care homes for older people

These three groups are being offered a spring booster now due to their increased risk of developing severe illness due to COVID-19, the interval since their last vaccination and waning of immunity since then. Information about when the next doses will be provided to the general population is not currently available.

C

If they are vaccinated and had boosters that informs me the vaccinations don’t work and suggest a waste of public money. Please confirm that is a reasonable conclusion.

The Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 gives a right to request information that is held in recorded form, unless exempt. This aspect of the request poses a question rather than seeking information held in recorded form. In any event, this information is not held. Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 applies

D

In the absence of any data please confirm how I can tell if the government and their civil servants are performing their roles adequately.

The Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 gives a right to request information that is held in recorded form, unless exempt. This aspect of the request poses a question rather than seeking information held in recorded form. In any event, this information is not held. Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 applies.

Articles applied

Article 3 - Meaning of "information held by a public authority"

For the purposes of this Law, information is held by a public authority if –

(a)     it is held by the authority, otherwise than on behalf of another person; or

(b)     it is held by another person on behalf of the authority. 

Article 23 - Information accessible to applicant by other means

(1) Information is absolutely exempt information if it is reasonably available to the applicant, otherwise than under this Law, whether or not free of charge.

(2) A scheduled public authority that refuses an application for information on this ground must make reasonable efforts to inform the applicant where the applicant may obtain the information.

Article 36 - Information intended for future publication

(1) Information is qualified exempt information if, at the time when the request for the information is made, the information is being held by a public authority with a view to its being published within 12 weeks of the date of the request.

(2) A scheduled public authority that refuses an application for information on this ground must make reasonable efforts to inform the applicant –

(a) of the date when the information will be published;

(b) of the manner in which it will be published; and

(c) by whom it will be published.

(3) In this Article, "published" means published –

(a) by a public authority; or

(b) by any other person.

Public Interest Test

Article 36 is a qualified exemption, which means that a public interest test has to be undertaken to examine the circumstances of the case and decide whether, on balance, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

Public interest considerations favouring disclosure

• disclosure of the information would support transparency and promote accountability to the general public.

Public interest considerations favouring withholding the information

• It is intended to publish an updated report within 12 weeks of the receipt of this request on www.gov.je. The information is currently being collated prior to publication and therefore it is not possible to release it at this stage.