Everyone had their part to play in the MMR issue.
Crap research, poorly reviewed by a supposedly high quality international journal, over-promoted on publication, with the inevitable media interest. Ignorant or wilfully exaggerated reporting in sections of the media (Daily Mail mainly).
Couple this with the pitiful, blustering response from the Department of Health, who initially outright dismissed the implied association between MMR, Crohns and autism without the strength of evidence to do so (that evidence is now in place, but certainly wasn’t in 1998), and it’s unsurprising that parents were and are both confused and distrustful of health advice.
Not many people come out of this with any credit.