London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

Britain could approve fourth Covid jab in 4 weeks, says Novavax trial chief, as EU demand ‘fairer share’ of UK’s vaccines

Britain could approve fourth Covid jab in 4 weeks, says Novavax trial chief, as EU demand ‘fairer share’ of UK’s vaccines

The chief investigator for the Novavax vaccine trial in the UK has claimed their injection could be reviewed and ready for rollout within a month as GlaxoSmithKline pens contract to “fill and finish” the jab in Britain.
Speaking to the Evening Standard on Tuesday, Novavax’s vaccine trial chief Professor Paul Heath said its approval would help maintain the “momentum” of Britain's immunization programme.

“The regulator will do a very detailed and thorough review and will decide in good time,” he said, adding “I would hope it would be in the spring, possibly end of April.”

Heath claimed that the firm has given nearly all the required data to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) for them to conclude their “rolling review” process.

The vaccine was found to have 86% efficacy against the British variant of Covid-19 and be 96% effective against the original virus strain. Sixty million doses of the jab have been ordered by the British government which will be manufactured at the Fujifilm plant in Billingham, England’s North-East.

The final stage of the vaccine’s manufacture will be carried out by GlaxoSmithKline, as announced by the prime minister on Monday, at another facility in the North East of England.

If approved by the MHRA, the jab will be the UK’s fourth vaccine ready for rollout after the shots produced by Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Moderna.

On Monday, PM Boris Johnson said Britain was keen to continue developing vaccine manufacturing capacity. If approved, a further vaccine, developed by Valneva will be manufactured in Scotland.

The UK and the EU are currently engaged in talks in order to achieve a “fairer deal” for the 27-nation bloc. Brussels believes London should start sharing some of the jabs manufactured in the UK with European nations as a reciprocal measure for doses made in the EU which were distributed to the UK.

On Monday, Johnson’s government dismissed rumours it was ready to provide jabs to the Republic of Ireland in an effort to prevent Covid-19 infections being imported into Northern Ireland as Belfast relaxes restrictions.

The UK has made significantly more progress than EU countries in vaccinating against Covid-19. More than 57% of British adults have been inoculated, while many EU countries are yet to hit 15%.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Bunkers, Billions and Apocalypse: The Secret Compounds of Zuckerberg and the Tech Giants
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
Horror in the Skies: Plane Engine Exploded, Passengers Sent Farewell Messages
MSNBC Rebrands as MS NOW Amid Comcast’s Cable Spin-Off
AI in Policing: Draft One Helps Speed Up Reports but Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns
Shame in Norway: Crown Princess’s Son Accused of Four Rapes
Apple Begins Simultaneous iPhone 17 Production in India and China
A Robot to Give Birth: The Chinese Announcement That Shakes the World
Finnish MP Dies by Suicide in Parliament Building
Outrage in the Tennis World After Jannik Sinner’s Withdrawal Storm
William and Kate Are Moving House – and the New Neighbors Were Evicted
Class Action Lawsuit Against Volkswagen: Steering Wheel Switches Cause Accidents
Taylor Swift on the Way to the Super Bowl? All the Clues Stirring Up Fans
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Apple Expands Social Media Presence in China With RedNote Account Ahead of iPhone 17 Launch
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Cambridge Dictionary Adds 'Skibidi,' 'Delulu,' and 'Tradwife' Amid Surge of Online Slang
Bill Barr Testifies No Evidence Implicated Trump in Epstein Case; DOJ Set to Release Records
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
The CEO Who Replaced 80% of Employees for the AI Revolution: "I Would Do It Again"
Emails Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Character.ai Bets on Future of AI Companionship
China Ramps Up Tax Crackdown on Overseas Investments
Japanese Office Furniture Maker Expands into Bomb Shelter Market
Intel Shares Surge on Possible U.S. Government Investment
Hurricane Erin Threatens U.S. East Coast with Dangerous Surf
EU Blocks Trade Statement Over Digital Rule Dispute
EU Sends Record Aid as Spain Battles Wildfires
JPMorgan Plans New Canary Wharf Tower
Zelenskyy and his allies say they will press Trump on security guarantees
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Escalating Clashes in Serbia as Anti-Government Protests Spread Nationwide
The Drought in Britain and the Strange Request from the Government to Delete Old Emails
Category 5 Hurricane in the Caribbean: 'Catastrophic Storm' with Winds of 255 km/h
"No, Thanks": The Mathematical Genius Who Turned Down 1.5 Billion Dollars from Zuckerberg
The surprising hero, the ugly incident, and the criticism despite victory: "Liverpool’s defense exposed in full"
Digital Humans Move Beyond Sci-Fi: From Virtual DJs to AI Customer Agents
YouTube will start using AI to guess your age. If it’s wrong, you’ll have to prove it
×