THE leader of Swansea Council is backing calls for people to take up the MMR vaccination.
Councillor David Phillips (pictured) said it is paramount that people take the jab for protection against measles.
He said: "This is a worrying time for parents because measles can be unpleasant and is potentially a fatal virus. The way to beat it and for people to put their minds at rest is to get vaccinations for those children who aren't vaccinated.
"So I would urge parents to heed the advice from Public Health Wales and get their children vaccinated as soon as they can.
"We have been working closely with Public Health Wales and ABMU to get the message out to parents. Next week public health experts are visiting four of our schools to offer vaccinations to those children whose parents have given permission.
"I think this shows there is a lot of commitment by all those involved to tackle the problem. But the key message to parents is that they should play their part and get their unvaccinated children vaccinated."
The leader of the Welsh Lib Dems has also joined the calls, and the measles outbreaks spreads up the Swansea Valley.
Kirsty Williams, whose constituency is Brecon and Radnorshire, said:
"It is very worrying that the measles outbreak has continued to spread and the numbers continue to rise at an alarming rate. Measles is highly infectious and in rare circumstances can have very serious consequences.
"The evidence is absolutely clear, the MMR jab is totally safe but having measles is not. If your child has not been vaccinated, please do so as quickly as possible."
Visitors to the Evening Post website have also been discussing the measles outbreak.
Neathguard said: "Could it be that previous generations knowing how serious measles was had their children vaccinated, and as the decease became less and less, parents became complacent and did not have the jab?"
