FactCheckNI explainer articles
With the announcement of the rollout of vaccines for COVID-19, there has been discussion on whether it should be made compulsory for individuals to be vaccinated. On 14 December 2020 the UK Parliament debated this topic in Westminster Hall, as a result of an e-petition. Continue reading COVID-19 and mandatory vaccination
Back in June 2020, Kanye West revealed that he had contracted coronavirus in February. He expressed reservations about possible vaccines, encompassing many frequently shared claims:
“It’s so many of our children that are being vaccinated and paralyzed,” he claimed. “So when they say the way we’re going to fix Covid is with a vaccine, I’m extremely cautious. That’s the mark of the beast. They want to put chips inside of us, they want to do all kinds of things, to make it where we can’t cross the gates of heaven.”
A lot of this sounds like something you’d watch in an episode of Black Mirror. But is there any truth to it? Is any of it even possible? Continue reading COVID-19 vaccines and microchip devices
At the time of writing, there are 78 COVID-19 vaccines in development. Thirteen are in third stage trials, and seven have limited approval for use. The Pfizer/BioNtech vaccine was the first to be approved for use in the UK on 2 December 2020.
Concerns have been expressed on social media that COVID-19 vaccines are made from aborted fetuses, and some people object to the vaccines on religious and ethical grounds.
Most of the COVID-19 vaccines in development do not use human cell lines in their production. For example, Pfizer and Moderna use mRNA technology. Continue reading COVID-19 vaccines and aborted fetuses
The Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine has been approved for use in the UK from the week commencing 6 December 2020. This means that the UK has become the first country in the world to approve the vaccine for widespread use. MHRA, the British regulator, says the jab, which offers up to 95% protection against Covid-19 illness, is safe for distribution. Continue reading The COVID-19 mRNA vaccine: What is it and how has it been developed so quickly?
In 2019, available figures estimate that 4.4% of pregnancies of Northern Ireland residents ended in abortion. This compares to an estimated 24% of pregnancies in England and Wales in 2018 ending in abortion. Globally, an estimated average of 29% of pregnancies from 2015–2019 ended in abortion. This explainer article examines the accuracy and completeness of these figures, particularly for Northern Ireland. Continue reading Pregnancies and abortion in Northern Ireland
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