‘We WERE right to stay out of EU’s vaccination scheme’: Decision to run our own Covid-19 inoculation drive is vindicated after figures show UK has given out more jabs than rest of Europe combined, MPs are told
- Figures show the UK is fourth in the world for number of vaccines administered
- The only countries ahead of the UK are Israel, United Arab Emirates and Bahrain
- While UK has vaccinated 4.19 per 100 people, the closest EU country is Denmark which has vaccinated 2.02 per 100 people while the UK is at 4.19 per 100 people
- Former vaccines tsar said decision to go it alone meant UK in ‘advanced position’
The UK’s decision to opt out of the EU vaccination scheme has led to it administering more Covid jabs than the rest of Europe combined, MPs have heard.
Figures show the UK is fourth in the world for the number of vaccines administered so far at 4.19 per 100 people, behind Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
This compares to 0.21 per 100 people in France, 0.82 in Germany, with Denmark the closest EU nation at 2.02.
Former vaccines tsar Kate Bingham told MPs that the decision to go it alone meant we were now in an ‘advanced position’ compared to other countries.
She told the Commons public accounts committee that EU rules would have meant an end to the negotiations already under way with AstraZeneca.
Mrs Bingham, former chairman of the UK Vaccine Taskforce, said: ‘We felt the conditions were too tight and that we would actually be able to act more quickly if we did it independently.’
In July, officials chose not to join the EU vaccine scheme as it meant having no say on decisions including pricing or which manufacturers to negotiate with.
Former vaccines tsar Kate Bingham, pictured at the start of the vaccine trial, told MPs the decision to go it alone meant the UK is in an ‘advanced position’ compared to other countries
Britain has so far agreed supply deals for seven different vaccines, totalling 367million doses, for at least £3.7billion.
The EU’s vaccine rollout has been hindered by supply chain issues, after purchasing 300million doses of the Pfizer vaccine.
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