Boris: We will bash on with jab programme
draconian measures. During crisis talks over the bloc’s vaccines fiasco last night, top Eurocrat Ursula von der Leyen received the backing of member states to make a grab for “Europe’s fair share” of vaccines.
Meanwhile leaders in Brussels were fighting among themselves over whether they should blockade vaccines or their components.
Dutch PM Mark Rutte said EU leaders had accepted proposals for increased export controls – but they’ve insisted that before they are used, relationships with other countries and global supply chains need to be taken in to account.
He also warned that production of the Pfizer jab in Belgium would grind to a halt because it is reliant on components made in Britain.
He said: “We should not do stuff that leaves us with not more but less vaccines.” His allies told Commission President Ms von der Leyen she risked triggering a global trade war that would be detrimental to the EU’s supplies if she goes ahead with her blockade.
As the crunch meeting bumped along, the vaccination programme in England was powering ahead with nearly nine in 10 over-50s having had a jab. Speaking during a visit to a nursery in west London, Boris Johnson said: “We will bash on with our programme but of course we are going to keep working with our EU partners and our friends.”
The Prime Minister added that he was “on the side of openness” in the trade of vaccines.
“I don’t want to see blockades of vaccines or of medicines, I don’t think that’s the way forward either for us or for any of our friends.”
Senior UK Government sources said Britain’s jab programme would not be thrown off course by the EU if it turns protectionist. One insider said it was important for Britain “to show and be in favour of a global approach on the vaccines”.
They added: “We are still absolutely confident we will hit our targets of April 15 and the end of July. We are continuing to push ahead.”
Bitter internal divisions over the EU’s low vaccination rate boiled over yesterday when Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz claimed his country had not been given its fair share of the bloc’s supplies and warned there would be “damage to the EU like we haven’t seen in a long time” if the issue continues. And French president Emmanuel Macron told a TV channel: “We didn’t shoot for the stars. We were wrong to lack ambition.” The men lashed out as EU leaders prepared to meet online to discuss export bans that would hit UK supplies. But the threats were widely condemned, with even Jean-Claude Juncker, the former top eurocrat, warning Brussels to step back from waging a “stupid vaccine war”.
The UK and EU agreed on Wednesday to work together to find a solution.
Latest figures show 87 per cent of over-50s in England received their first dose by March 21.
The South-west had the highest
rate at 90.5 per cent while London was the lowest at 78.8. Some 93.7 per cent of older care home residents in England have also received their first jab.
NHS England estimates that one in five people aged 16 to 49 are also likely to have had a jab. Meanwhile a quarter of people in England aged 80 and over are likely to have had both doses, meaning they are fully vaccinated.
Expert analysis showed the impact the vaccination programme has already had. Between December 8, when the first jab was given, and the end of January, four million people were inoculated, saving around 6,100 lives, according to Public Health England (PHE). But the figure is expected to be an underestimate and the “true value” of the vaccines will become apparent in the future.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: “These results give us hope and remind us about the importance of getting the jab as soon as we are eligible. I urge everyone to come forward when it’s your turn.”
The study said around 5,900 deaths had been averted among people aged 80 and over and 200 in those aged 70 to 79.
Dr Mary Ramsay, PHE Head of Immunisation, said: “We have shown previously that the vaccinations are hugely effective at stopping people from getting the infection.
“With every additional day more lives have and will be saved.
“While the vaccines have a striking impact on mortality, we don’t yet know how much they will reduce the risk of you passing Covid-19 on to others.
“So it is really important that you continue to act like you have the virus.”
Meanwhile NHS England’s chief executive Sir Simon Stevens said the coronavirus alert level should be reduced from four to three due to “reduced acute pressures”.