'We simply don't trust Government'

Kate and Mark Fazakerley's fouryearold daughter Isobel caught measles two weeks ago while attending the White House Preparatory School in Clapham Park. Isobel then passed it on to her younger brother Dominic, who is two next month.

Mrs Fazakerley, 36, said: "I know they keep telling us that it is dangerous, and there has been one little girl who was in hospital, but when I spoke to my doctor they said there was nothing unduly dangerous - they said just keep an eye out on them. There is the chance of complications, but it is something like one in 100,000 cases.

"As it happens, we were just about to get the individual injections for Isobel. Neither she nor her brother have had the MMR vaccine, as we are just not confident about it all.

"Friends have a child who had the jab, who later contracted a mild form of autism. You can see it is a very strong combination of injections for a young child.

"We are basing our decision about the vaccine on what has happened to parents I know. We discovered Isobel was diabetic when she was two and a half, which was another reason for not getting it done."

Mrs Fazakerley, a part-time marketing manager, added that many of their neighbours are questioning the validity of the vaccine. "Only about a third of people in Isobel's class have had the MMR jab," she said. "It is a constant subject of conversation in our local playgroups as to whether or not to have it.

"The nursery is a private one and a lot of the parents are well-educated and have had the time to research exactly whether it is safe to have MMR or not. We simply do not trust the Government on this.

"They pay for treatment programmes for people who abuse drugs and alcohol, so I think they should pay for people who choose not to have the MMR vaccine."