The figures from House of Commons Library research, commissioned by the Liberal Democrats, shows that the proportion of healthcare workers who received a flu vaccine this winter fell from 64% in 2016/17, when data was first collected, to just 37% this winter. That is a record low and a fall of 26.7 percentage points. There has been a marked fall in vaccine uptake from the peak of 2020/21, where it hit 76%.

In addition, the data shows the level of flu vaccine uptake varied hugely between NHS trusts. In total, 62 of the 184 NHS trusts that had reported data for this winter saw less than a third of their staff take up the flu vaccine.

The number of frontline healthcare workers who have taken up the flu vaccine this winter was 420,000, down 15.3% on 2016/17's figure of 496,000 workers.

The Liberal Democrats have called for the Government to increase awareness among healthcare workers about flu vaccinations by coordinating a campaign across the health service.

Liberal Democrat health and social care spokesperson, Helen Morgan, said: ‘The surge in those staying in hospital because they had flu, leading to fewer beds for those coming into A&E was a major problem contributing to these awful scenes.

‘That's why it is absolutely vital that the Government boosts vaccine uptake through a coordinated awareness campaign across the health service, ensuring that staff are properly supported as they continue to do life-saving work for our NHS.'