Health Min. admits she misled Parliament about mpox vaccines; MPs pushing for donation

The Netherlands also has old mpox vaccines in stock, health minister Fleur Agema admitted during a debate with the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of Dutch Parliament. However, these are "difficult vaccines with many side effects," said the PVV minister, and that is why she did not count them when asked whether the Netherlands can donate vaccines to countries in Africa struggling with the disease. The Tweede Kamer is pushing to donate to other countries and has reacted in dismay to the revelation of additional stock.

How many boxes are in the stock has to stay a secret, Agema said. One of her predecessors reported in 2019 that the Netherlands had enough of these vaccines to vaccinate the entire population.

But the vaccines are of older manufacture, the so-called first generation, and "they leave ugly spots, scratches on the skin," the minister warned. The vaccines currently being used are of the third generation. According to Agema, the World Health Organization has not asked for vaccines from the first generation. It would not be smart for African countries to use this remedy.

Agema refuses to consider the older vaccines as part of the 'safe stock' she wants to keep. She would not say whether she would use them in the event of an outbreak in the Netherlands.

She added that she regrets the confusion about the stock.

The Tweede Kamer is pushing for the Netherlands to donate some of its stock to African countries. A parliament majority has officially asked Agema to do this. The minister has already said she would not block a donation if the Tweede Kamer requested it.

Opposition and government party NSC think that the Cabinet should give Central African countries a part of the vaccines that have a limited shelf life and are not immediately usable in the Netherlands. The virus is spreading fast in countries like Congo and Rwanda. Advocates argue, following the lead of many experts, that by combating this outbreak, the Netherlands would indirectly best protect its own population.

An official vote will take place on Thursday as the PVV minister is resisting the calls from the Tweede Kamer to donate the vaccines.