Fourth coronavirus vaccine could be approved in the UK
The Novavax jab has been shown to work against the new variants from the UK and South Africa
Last updated 24th May 2022
A fourth Covid-19 vaccine could be approved for use in the UK within weeks as late-stage trials suggested it was 89% effective in preventing coronavirus.
The UK has secured 60 million doses of the Novavax jab – to be produced on Teesside – which is believed to offer protection against the new UK and South African variants.
It was shown to be 89.3% effective at preventing coronavirus in participants in its Phase 3 clinical trial in the UK, which involved more than 15,000 people aged between 18-84, of which 27% were older than 65, Novavax said.
The vaccine will now be assessed by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirmed, as he thanked volunteers who made the results possible.
Stan Erck, chief executive of Novavax, told the BBC the manufacturing plant in Stockton-on-Tees should be up and running by March or April, with the company hoping to get approval for the vaccine from the MHRA around the same time.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the NHS stands ready to roll out the vaccine if it is approved, which he said would provide a “significant boost to our vaccination programme and another weapon in our arsenal to beat this awful virus”.
The chairman of the Government’s Vaccine Taskforce, Clive Dix, said the results were “spectacular”, adding:
“The efficacy shown against the emerging variants is also extremely encouraging.
“This is an incredible achievement that will ensure we can protect individuals in the UK and the rest of the world from this virus.”
The jab has shown around 60% effectiveness against the South African variant, which has been worrying scientists due to concerns vaccines may not work against it, but it offered 86% protection against the new UK strain.
Two vaccines have already been rolled out in the UK – from Pfizer and Oxford/AstraZeneca – while a third from Moderna has been approved for use.
The Novavax jab would be delivered in the second half of 2021 if it receives MHRA approval.
In other developments:
- First Minister Mark Drakeford will confirm later on Friday the lockdown will remain in force in Wales for another three weeks, with the Welsh Government to allow primary school pupils to begin returning to their desks after the February half-term if coronavirus rates continue to fall.
- The Government said a further 1,239 people died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 as of Thursday, while there were another 28,680 lab-confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK.
- Primary age pupils’ performance in both reading and maths has dropped significantly following school closures during the first lockdown, research from the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) charity found.
- More than twice the proportion of the white British population of England are likely to have received their first dose of Covid-19 vaccine compared with the black population, provisional figures from NHS England indicated.
- Researchers from University College London found that people are exercising less, spending more time watching TV and gaming, and are less happy in this lockdown compared with the first.
What is Covid-19?
Covid-19 emerged as a virus in December 2019 as the first cases are reported in Wuhan, China. Scientifically known as SARS-CoV-2, the virus created a global pandemic as it began to spread around the world. Symptoms can range from very mild to severe, causing death in some cases. Some people are completely asymptomatic and do not realise they even have the virus.
Has there been a virus like this before?
The SARS pandemic in 2003 was similar to Covid-19 in that it was also caused by a coronavirus. SARS stands for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome. The global outbreak of SARS lasted from 2002-2003, infecting over 8,000 people and killing 774. Covid-19 and SARS are both respiratory illnesses, but SARS was much more deadly and less infectious.
What are the main symptoms?
The NHS say the main Covid-19 symptoms are a high temperature, a new and continuous cough and loss or change to taste of sense or smell. NHS advises people with Covid-19 to take plenty of rest, drink lots of fluids, and take paracetamol for a high temperature.
What was the Government reaction?
The UK Government announced the first of several lockdowns in March 2020. By the end of the month, more than 100 countries around the world introduce full or partial lockdowns, preventing people from going to work, restricting everyday tasks and affecting the livelihoods of billions of people globally.
Which countries have been worst hit?
During the first year of the pandemic, the US recorded the highest number of Covid-19 cases in the world and the most deaths, reporting an unprecedented 100,000 new cases in one day on November 4th 2020. Thousands of new cases were recorded on the same date in India (46,000+), the United Kingdom (22,000+), Brazil (17,000+) and Mexico (5,000+), while Ireland records less than 1,000 (578). Hundreds of other countries also reported a high rate of infection.
How have vaccines fought against Covid-19?
Vaccines began being approved for use across the globe. By January 2021, the UK approved the use of three different vaccines. The Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine, Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine and the Moderna vaccine are rolled out to the public, with older people and those with greater health concerns getting priority. In April 2022, just under 53 million people had received at least one dose of the vaccine.
What are new Covid variants?
Four new variants of Covid-19 were discovered around the world. Beta was found in South Africa, Gamma in Brazil and Delta in India, while the Alpha variant was first located in Kent, UK. New variants are not likely to make someone more seriously ill than Covid-19 would, but variants like Delta have a higher infection rate, meaning it can be more easily spread.
The Omicron variant was first detected late 2021 in South Africa. Since then, it has become one of the most dominant variants in the world, with its own sub strains - BA.4 and BA.5.
Meanwhile in the EU
The development came amid a deepening row between the European Union and AstraZeneca over vaccine supply shortages in the bloc.
Brussels has demanded doses be sent from British plants to make up for a shortfall, but Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove said the Government will not allow vaccines intended for the UK to go to the EU.
However, German MEP Dr Peter Liese warned the UK it would be acting like former US president Donald Trump if it pursued a “UK first” contract for the vaccines.
“If it’s true what some say that the UK had a “UK first” contract – that it’s guaranteed that they will get everything and everybody else has to suffer – then this is like Donald Trump. He did a US-first policy,” he told the BBC’s Newscast podcast.
“That’s why we have a huge problem. For the BioNTech/Pfizer vaccine, there are two plants. One in the EU and one in the US. And the US doesn’t export even to Canada. Everything comes from the European Union.
“We cannot be the only one who plays fair in this game. If others say, ‘UK first’, ‘US first’, then we have to say, ‘EU first’, but I hope – I really hope – this will be sorted out and everybody will get its fair share.”
The Guardian suggested the EU could block millions of coronavirus vaccines from being exported to the UK within days in response to shortages in the bloc.
Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon was accused of siding with the EU by suggesting she may publish details of coronavirus vaccine supplies arriving in the country as early as next week.
Douglas Ross, the Scottish Tory leader, said such a move would be “deeply irresponsible”.
The UK Government previously claimed that setting out how many doses are expected and when could breach commercial confidentiality.
Meanwhile the European Medicines Agency (EMA) is expected to approve the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine for use in the EU on Friday, although it is not yet clear whether it will set an age limit.
German authorities have said there is currently “not sufficient data to assess the vaccination effectiveness from 65 years”.
But Public Health England (PHE) said data on the immune response for those aged 65 and over had been “reassuring”.
The Prime Minister also argued that the evidence shows that the vaccine “provides a good immune response across all age groups”.