Key Sentence:
- The vaccine against Covid-19, produced in Scotland by French company Valneva, will not receive approval from British regulators, Health Minister Sajid Javid said.
Javid spoke in Parliament a day after the UK government scrapped a deal on the Valneva Covid-19 vaccine. Britain ordered about 100 million cans before canceling the deal. Mr. Javid said the Westminster and Scottish governments would work together to “see what else we can do for Livingston’s work.”
He said, “There are commercial reasons why we Javid terminated the contract, but I can tell him that we also know that the vaccine in question the company developed did not get approval from the MHRA [Health Products Regulatory Agency] here in the UK,” he said in a statement—responding to a question from Scottish National Party MP Hannah Bardel, whose constituency is Livingston.
“He is not recommending the use of unapproved vaccines,” he said, adding that Livingston’s vaccination facility was “critical” to the UK. Scottish governments “We will work together to see what else we can do,” he said. In a recent UK trial examining potential accelerators, the Financial Times reported. That Valnera’s vaccine was less effective than some competitors.
However, the vaccine has not yet completed clinical trials.
The Scots also have reported that the dispute is related to shipping issues amid supply chain issues linked to the freight forwarder to Covid and Brexit. Ms. Bardell said she and the company were “shocked” that the UK terminated Valneva’s contract “with little notice or consultation. And that the UK provided “very little clarity and motivation” as to the reasons for doing so.
“Valneva is playing an important role in the global fight against Covid. And is working very hard to improve and adapt their work on vaccines as new options emerge,” he said. “It’s a surprising way to treat a company that is tirelessly working on vaccines.” In September 2020, Valneva announced. That the UK government had ordered 60 million doses of their vaccine. And invested in their manufacturing facility in Livingston.
The Valneva vaccine uses the inactivated Covid-19 virus similar to the flu vaccine. And some say it has the potential to attract people who are suspicious of a vaccine with the new technology. Valneva shares fell 35% after it was announced that the UK government had scrapped a deal to supply a Covid-19 vaccine, worth up to €1.4 billion).
Vaccination Minister Nadim Zahavi said on Tuesday that the British government had the right to terminate the deal.
“This is commercially sensitive, but we have the right to cancel the Valneva vaccine, and we have informed the company that we will do so,” Zahavi said. The government has said the decision would not affect the supply of vaccines in the UK. “The company statement will have no impact on vaccine shipments and will not be part of our vaccine distribution during the fall and winter months,” said a spokesman for Prime Minister Boris Johnson.