Coronavirus: Vaccination

Foreign and Commonwealth Office written question – answered at on 27 March 2020.

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Photo of Emily Thornberry Emily Thornberry Shadow Foreign Secretary

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his US counterpart on ensuring that any vaccine developed for covid-19 is shared as widely as possible across the world.

Photo of Nigel Adams Nigel Adams Minister of State (Foreign and Commonwealth Office) (Joint with the Department for International Development)

The UK is in regular contact at the highest levels with our US partners on our joint response to the global pandemic, including discussions on how we can best coordinate our COVID-19 response and research into vaccine development. The Foreign Secretary will be speaking to my opposites in the G7 this week on this matter. An effective vaccine will be vital to the long-term control of the outbreak. To date the UK has invested £40 million to the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), specifically for COVID-19 vaccine development, alongside our existing support to their research. The British Government will continue to work closely with like-minded partners, including the US, to ensure that any vaccine candidates are affordable and accessible to all countries across the world.

The UK priority remains an effective, science-led response, supporting the WHO and other multilateral actors to contain COVID-19 and mitigate secondary health and socio-economic impacts. Our approach is guided by the Chief Medical Officer, working on the basis of the best possible scientific evidence.

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