Vaccine scientist says a return to normal by ‘winter next year’

One of the scientists behind the first Covid-19 vaccine to clear interim clinical trials has said the impact of the jab will kick in next summer, and normality should return by next winter.

Professor Ugur Sahin, chief executive of BioNTech, said it was “absolutely essential” to have a high vaccination rate before autumn next year to ensure a return to normal life next winter.

He acknowledged that the next few months will be “hard” and that the promising preliminary results on the vaccine, created in partnership with Pfizer, will not have an impact on infection numbers in the current wave.

Interim results from the jab were found to be more than 90% effective, the two firms announced last week, but safety and additional efficacy data continue to be collected.

“If everything continues to go well, we will start to deliver the vaccine end of this year, beginning next year,” Prof Sahin told the BBC ’s Andrew Marr Show.

“Our goal is to deliver more than 300 million of vaccine doses until April next year, which could allow us to already start to make an impact.

“The bigger impact will not happen until summer, the summer will help us anyway because the infection rate will go down.

“What is absolutely essential is that we get a high vaccination rate before autumn- winter next y e a r, so that means all the immun isa t ion , vaccination approaches must be accomplished before next autumn.

“I’m confident that this will happen.”

It’s hoped the impact of the jab will be felt by summer.