London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 04, 2025

UK signs deal for GlaxoSmithKline to produce 60 million doses of Novavax Covid-19 vaccine

UK signs deal for GlaxoSmithKline to produce 60 million doses of Novavax Covid-19 vaccine

The UK government has signed a deal with British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) to produce up to 60 million doses of the Novavax Covid-19 vaccine, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced.
"I can today announce that the vaccine taskforce has reached an agreement with GlaxoSmithKline to finish and bottle this precious fluid," Johnson told a coronavirus news briefing on Monday.

Manufacturing will take place at GSK's site in Barnard Castle, a town in the North East of England that drew headlines last year after it was visited by Johnson's then-top aide Dominic Cummings in breach of the national lockdown.

GSK will "fill and finish" vials of the US-developed vaccine at its Barnard Castle facility as soon as May, the company said in a statement.

The antigen component of the jab, which teaches the body to produce antibodies to fight Covid-19, will also be produced in the North East by FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies in the town of Stockton-on-Tees.

The government has secured 60 million doses of the vaccine under an advance purchase agreement with Novavax, but the jab will still need to be approved by the UK's drug regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

The results of a UK phase 3 trial of the jab earlier this month showed that it has an efficacy of 96% against the original form of Covid-19, as well as high protection against the variants from the UK and South Africa.

More than 30 million people have received their first dose of one of the UK's three approved vaccines made by Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca.

During Monday's briefing Johnson did not refer to Barnard Castle explicitly, only saying that the vaccine would be made "in the North East."

Cummings was sighted in the town in April last year at the height of England's first lockdown when the government was urging people to stay at home.

Shortly after suffering Covid-19 symptoms, he drove from London to his parents' house in Durham, before driving to Barnard Castle to "test his eyesight", which he said had been affected by the virus.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Queen Camilla’s Teenage Courage: Fended Off Attempted Assault on London Train, New Biography Reveals
Scottish Brothers Set Record in Historic Pacific Row
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Court of Appeal Allows Asylum Seekers to Remain at Essex Hotel Amid Local Tax Boycott Threats
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Nvidia Reveals: Two Mystery Customers Account for About 40% of Revenue
Woody Allen: "I Would Be Happy to Direct Trump Again in a Film"
Pickles are the latest craze among Generation Z in the United States.
Deadline Day Delivers Record £125m Isak Move and Donnarumma to City
Nestlé Removes CEO Laurent Freixe Following Undisclosed Relationship with Subordinate
Giuliani Seriously Injured in Accident – Trump to Award Him the Presidential Medal of Freedom
EU is getting aggressive: Four AfD Candidates Die Unexpectedly Ahead of North Rhine-Westphalia Local Elections
Lula and Putin Hold Strategic BRICS Discussions Ahead of Trump–Putin Summit
WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that looks a lot like Telegram.
Investigations Reveal Rise in ‘Sex-for-Rent’ Listings Across Canada Exploiting Vulnerable Tenants
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
×