London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Jul 25, 2025

Boris Johnson helps to load doses of vaccine for mobile distribution. Reuters

Alarm as world scrambles for vaccines

Like last year's stampede to grab a share of facial masks and protective clothes, the scramble for Covid vaccines is heating up at alarming speed as the number of coronavirus infections surpassed 100 million cases globally.
Worse still, the situation is complicated by an unexpected tug of war between the European Union and big pharmaceutical companies over delayed delivery.

In light of Hong Kong's small size, it is becoming increasingly probable that the SAR will be pushed to the back of the queue, casting doubt on the plan to start vaccinating the population from next month.

The SAR's vaccine tzar Patrick Nip Tak-kuen must put together an urgent contingency plan to prepare for the worst case scenario that Hong Kong does not get the vaccines it has ordered.

When the government first announced the procurement of vaccines, it was clear that a rather wide margin was provided as a cushion against the unpredictable. In theory, the purchase of Sinovac, Fosun/BioNTech and Astrazeneca/Oxford jabs would be more than enough to vaccinate the entire population.

Unfortunately, what had appeared to be safe and sound could also fall apart to catch everyone by surprise.

By now, many people have privately ruled out Sinovac as a pragmatic choice after the drugmaker repeatedly withheld important trial data from publication for peer review, which is an essential step to secure regulatory approval.

Meanwhile, the supply of Fosun/BioNTech has unexpectedly become uncertain after the EU issued a veiled threat to block vaccine exports by way of new procedural red tape. That was in angry reaction to Astrazeneca's notice that its European factory could not produce as many doses as ordered for timely delivery.

The BioNTech jabs that Hong Kong is due to receive soon are manufactured in Europe, although procured through the Chinese company Fosun Pharma. Will the company's Hong Kong shipment be affected too?

It's no wonder British Prime Minister Boris Johnson invested big money last year to build a factory to manufacture the Oxford vaccine locally.

In hindsight, he probably did so in anticipation of the international vaccine war.

Unless the SAR administration acts quickly to secure alternative supplies, the chance of Hongkongers not getting vaccines on time can become real.

Sadly, there are not many choices left. Moderna is a possibility, but it is not necessarily realistic for Hong Kong to get hold of it when it is already in short supply in the US.

Sinopharm - the mainland vaccine already given to local pro-Beijing politicians - is another possibility.

Mainland authorities gave it conditional approval for public use on New Year's Eve after the company said interim data showed it had 79 percent efficacy in phase-three trials.

It's hoped that the company can publish the full data for peer review as soon as possible so that the scientific community can consider it as a realistic backup - bearing in mind that the Sinopharm jabs are already in use in some African, Middle Eastern and Asian countries.

In the scramble for vaccines, both speed and quality matter.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
×