Rt Hon
Sajid Javid MP 30 November 2021
Secretary
of State for Health and Social Care
39 Victoria
Street
London SW1H
0EU
Dear
Secretary of State,
The
Federation of Poles in Great Britain, which has been the umbrella organizations
for Polish organizations in the UK since 1946, is particularly concerned at the
considerable anecdotal evidence to the effect that many younger members of the large-scale
Polish community in the UK are resisting invitations to take up anti-Covid
vaccinations, and also at the lack of accessible firm ONS and PHE statistics on
the Polish minority in this country. We are writing to you as concern is
growing about the new “omicron” mutation.
We are
aware of vocal resistance to vaccinations displayed at Polish social events and
even among NHS staff of Polish origin. This has occurred despite efforts by
many Polish organizations such as the Polish Social and Cultural Association,
Merseyside Polonia, the Polish Weekly and ourselves, to hold online forums and
make proper medical advice available on the dangers of Covid-19 using advertised
podcasts and social and community media. Unfortunately, many Polish citizens and
Britons with a Polish family background base their information on health issues
on sources in Poland where, despite a vigorous vaccination campaign, there is
considerable hostility in social media to warnings of the dangers of the Covid
pandemic and the need to vaccinate. We are aware furthermore that many Polish
citizens in Britain have not even registered with their local GP, partly
because of language problems, and partly because some still do not understand
the system in this country.
Statistical
evidence is currently sparse but the Migrant Essential Workers Project initiated
by the Universities of Glasgow and Sheffield had conducted a survey of 1100
members of the Polish community between February and April 2021which revealed
that 18% would not get vaccinated, 17% did not know, while 2.5% “preferred not
to say”. As you are aware, the hesitancy figures across all communities in the
UK is only 4%. This also correlates with
the alarming survey conducted in 2018 by Klaudia Bielecki, Senior Project
Manager at NHS Lothian Digital, which showed that uptake of flu vaccinations
among Polish children was only 25%.
Unfortunately,
because citizens of Polish ethnicity are included within the general
description of “White Other” in most social surveys conducted by the NHS and
other related institutions dealing with health, social services, or education,
it is difficult for your Department to focus on the Polish community
specifically. However, we are a statistically significant minority, comprising up
to 1.5% of the UK population. The ONS currently claims that there are 738,000
citizens of Polish nationality in this country, but it does not include those
born in Poland and possessing UK passports and nor does that take into account
that as many as 1.1 million Polish citizens are recorded as applying
successfully for settled status. Consequently, any significant vaccine
hesitancy within the Polish community suggests a considerable setback for the Covid
vaccination programme at large.
We urge
therefore that your Department should upgrade its statistics on “White Other”
to identify the Polish minority as statistically significant on health issues,
and also mount a large-scale government publicity in the Polish language to
encourage Covid vaccinations, similar to the ones conducted for South Asian and
black minorities, and in which local authorities and Polish social organizations
can participate.
Yours
sincerely
Włodzimierz
Mier Jedrzejowicz
President,
The Federation of Poles in Great Britain, CIO
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