UK could lead the field in tackling variants
THE UK could become one of the fastest countries in the world to approve new Covid19 vaccines to tackle variants.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) will oversee a fast-track approach to approving new jabs, after studies suggested variants may make vaccines less effective.
During a visit to the Glasgow Lighthouse Lab, Mr Hancock said: “We will have a fast-track approach to safely approving future vaccines that work against a variant of Covid-19.
“The vaccine programme has clearly been a huge UK success story, and part of the reason that we have been able to develop the vaccines so far, so quickly, is because of the MHRA’S rigorous yet flexible approach, which has been based entirely on looking as quickly as possible at the safety and efficacy of vaccines.
“I’m delighted that they’re taking that same principled approach to the approval process for vaccines that may work against variants.”
Scientists have become concerned about several variants, including one first identified in the Brazilian city of Manaus. A study this week suggested that between 25 per cent and 61% of people in the city who had previously had Covid were susceptible to reinfection with the worrying P1 variant found there.
Six cases of P1 have been found in the UK to date – three in England and three in Scotland.
Vaccine manufacturers including Pfizer and Astrazeneca are already working on new jabs to tackle variants in case they are needed.
MHRA chief executive Dr June Raine said the new approval process is “agile”, and the green light for new jabs could be given in just a few weeks after all data has been submitted on their effectiveness. Dr Raine insisted that no corners would be cut on safety, and the framework already exists for when annual flu jabs are tweaked.
She said: “Has this approach been done before? This approach that we’re putting out today for the Covid-19 vaccines is based on the tried-and-tested regulatory process which is used every year for seasonal flu jabs.”
She said that by carrying out a “real-time” rolling review of evidence, as was done for the original Covid-19 vaccines, the MHRA’S approval would come “in a very efficient manner, as short as a couple of weeks”. Dr Raine said the focus at the MHRA “is to make sure that innovation reaches patients in the shortest time”.
She added: “Our flexible guideline is what we believe will enable us to adapt very quickly to changing situations.”