Britain’s £130 million plan to manufacture a coronavirus vaccine even before it’s proved to work so the country can have 30 million doses ready by September as UK announces 170 more deaths – the lowest daily increase since lockdown began
- Business Secretary Alok Sharma said UK will get access to Oxford vaccine first
- It is currently going through trials with deal done with AstraZeneca to make it
- But Mr Sharma warned there are ‘no certainties’ and there may never be vaccine
- Here’s how to help people impacted by Covid-19
Britain will get first access to a coronavirus vaccine being developed by Oxford University with pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca poised to make 30 million for the UK by September – if it works.
Alok Sharma, the Business Secretary, today announced a deal has been done between the university and the company to manufacture the vaccine which is currently in clinical trials.
He pledged an additional £84 million to accelerate the development of the vaccine – on top of a previous £47 million pot of cash – so that mass production can start as soon as possible if it is proved to be effective.
Mr Sharma said the Oxford project is ‘progressing well’ and that another vaccine effort by Imperial College London is ‘also making good progress’.
However, he cautioned that despite the growing optimism there are ‘no certainties’ and there may never be a vaccine developed capable of tackling the deadly disease.
Mr Sharma also revealed that six drugs designed to treat coronavirus have now entered initial live clinical trials. The world is yet to identify a drug clinically proven to treat the disease.
The vaccine announcement came as Mr Sharma said the UK Covid-19 death toll had now reached 34,636 after a further 170 deaths today. That is the smallest increase since the start of lockdown.
Business Secretary Alok Sharma today announced a deal between Oxford University and AstraZeneca which could see millions of vaccines available in the UK by September
The latest official Downing Street statistics showed there had been 170 more coronavirus deaths today – the lowest number recorded since the start of lockdown
A total of just over 700 people ere admitted to hospitals in England with coronavirus today
The Government administered 91,206 tests as of May 17, slightly below Matt Hancock’s 100,000 daily target
A working vaccine is viewed as likely the only surefire way for the world to go back to something resembling normal life.
Mr Sharma last month announced the creation of a new vaccine task force to bring together the Government, universities and industry in the hope that the UK could lead the way in developing a vaccine.
The Business Secretary said he was ‘very proud’ of how quickly different sectors had united for the ‘critical mission’ with the Oxford and Imperial programmes emerging as ‘two of the world’s frontrunners’.
The Oxford vaccine is now in its first clinical trial and all phase one participants have now received their vaccine dose and are now being monitored by the clinical trial team.
Mr Sharma said: ‘The speed with which Oxford University has designed and organised these complex trials is genuinely unprecedented.
‘Imperial College are also making good progress and will be looking to move into clinical trials by mid-June with larger scale trials planned to begin in October.
‘So far the Government has invested £47 million in the Oxford and Imperial vaccine programmes.
‘But today I can announce an additional £84 million of new Government funding to help accelerate their work.
‘This new money will help mass produce the Oxford vaccine so that if current trials are successful we have dosages to start vaccinating the UK population straight away.
‘The funding will also allow Imperial to launch phase three clinical trials for its vaccine later this year.
‘I can also confirm that with Government support Oxford University has finalised a global licensing agreement with AstraZeneca for the commercialisation and manufacturing of the Oxford vaccine.
‘This means that if the vaccine is successful, AstraZeneca will work to make 30 million doses available by September for the UK as part of an agreement to deliver 100 million doses in total.
‘The UK will be first to get access and we can also ensure that in addition to supporting people here in the UK we are able to make the vaccine available to developing countries at the lowest possible cost.’
The fact that a deal has already been done between Oxford University and AstraZeneca will boost hopes that its vaccine has a good chance at success.
But Mr Sharma urged the nation to remain cautiously hopeful as he said ultimately both projects could fail.
He told the daily Downing Street press conference: ‘In total the Government has now committed a quarter of a billion pounds towards developing a vaccine in the UK.
‘But there are no certainties. In spite of the tireless efforts of our scientists it is possible that we may never find a successful coronavirus vaccine.’
He said: ‘Whilst there are currently no drugs in the world that have been clinically proven to treat coronavirus, the Government is working with our scientists and medical experts to identify promising candidates.
‘This collaborative UK programme known as Accord aims to get an early indication of drug treatments’ effectiveness in treating coronavirus.
‘Today I can report that six drugs have now entered initial live clinical trials.
‘If positive results are seen they will advance into larger scale trials.’