The controversial MMR measles jab for children has hit the headlines again.
The Government has rejected that claims a measles outbreak in South Wales was down to Department of Health policy in the 1990s.
Vaccination rates fell after Dr Andrew Wakefield's now discredited 1998 study linking the MMR jab and autism.
Dr Wakefield has told a national newspaper he had called for a single measles vaccine instead of MMR but this was not heeded.
But The Department of Health said its immunisation advice "has always kept the interests of patients paramount".
The controversy over the MMR jab -the combined vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella - was widely reported in the Telegraph in the 1990s and early 2000s. Dr Wakefield himself was interviewed by our reporters.
Parents were split by conflicting opinions; the government said the combined jab was safe, while Dr Wakefield's research considered whether there was a link between the three-in-one MMR vaccine and autism and bowel disease.
It focused on tests carried out on 12 children who had been referred to hospital for gastrointestinal problems.
When questions were raised in the wake of Dr Wakefield's research, the government and scientists insisted that the MMR was safe.
Now, Dr Wakefield has said: "While MMR vaccination uptake fell from February 1998, there was a reciprocal increase in the uptake of the single vaccines.
"Six months later, in September 1998, the British government withdrew the importation licence for the single vaccines, effectively blocking this option for parents.
"Measles cases in the UK rose when the government withdrew the importation licence for the single measles vaccine leaving concerned parents with no choice."
His comments came as vaccination clinics aimed at controlling the spread of measles in south Wales are being extended to areas not yet affected by the disease.
There have so far been 693 cases of measles in and around the Swansea area since November.
Today, a spokesman for the DoH said: "Dr Andrew Wakefield's claims are completely incorrect.
"Measles is a highly infectious and harmful disease. If your child has not had two doses of MMR, whatever their age, we urge you to contact your GP surgery and make an appointment."
What do you think? Has your child had the MMR jab, or have you decided to opt against vaccination? Share your thoughts by posting a comment below
