Different type of vaccine being developed at Scottish factory of a French company - an “inactivated whole virus” - UK task force secured 60m dose preorder in July for €470m with options for 130m more 2022-25, invested in factory. EU finalised first order of 30m this month.

Basically the Government through @katebingham acted like a venture capital fund, funding many vaccine candidates, expensively, across different types of tech, with companies from different countries (at time of some scepticism that a working vaccine could be produced so quickly)
Though despite the fact French Valneva had been funded for its vaccines in general in 2018 by EU’s investment bank, UK funding guaranteed its production in UK (speculative VC style investment) - similarly UK signed deal with Pfizer for German developed/ funded Biontech vaccine
UK approach explicitly focussed on speed (and boosting poor UK vaccine supply chain), at expense of cost. cost of individual batches, and cost of investing in spread of vaccines, not all would eventually be needed/ used...

EU focussed on lower price, & helping smaller EU nations
approach with Astra Zeneca went further - UK Govt via Matt Hancock involved in matchmaking AZ with Oxford University, funded early clinical trials that eg enabled private jets to ferry samples etc - 100m doses and pricing at cost were part of that deal struck at April wave 1 peak
Important thing is AZ was not a vaccine specialist - alliance was encouraged by Govt, ie other possible ones being considered by Ox were effectively blocked by Hancock because of national interest

Not sure EU approach clocks intimate involvement/ risk taken by UK Govt here...
good news for everyone, is that UK should, in theory, have access to too much vaccine over course of this year, and could therefore be in a position to help. Already tens of millions of Oxford vaccine is being mass manufactured in India and shipped to other developing countries..
appropriate analogy here with EU would have been it at an early stage funding and developing Biontech in Germany (it did).

But then at point Biontech did a deal with Pfizer, either have blocked that or insisted on first use in the EU, and paid handsomely, over odds for pleasure
Government playing EU-AZ spat very straight - even AZ supply chain stretches into EU.

And we don’t know which is the best performing vaccine, and that matters as we expect this will become an annual event...

UK, may yet be reliant on EU vaccines in future...
Things to discuss:

Paying over odds for quicker vaccines, & for some vaccines which will never be used can still be vg value for money vs lockdown cost.

Did UK turn necessity of coping with poor vaccine supply chain to advantage?

Were EU listening overly to its big Pharma cos?

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🌿𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝒂 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒓 : 𝑫𝒉𝒓𝒖𝒗𝒂 & 𝑽𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒏𝒖

Once upon a time there was a Raja named Uttānapāda born of Svayambhuva Manu,1st man on earth.He had 2 beautiful wives - Suniti & Suruchi & two sons were born of them Dhruva & Uttama respectively.
#talesofkrishna https://t.co/E85MTPkF9W


Now Suniti was the daughter of a tribal chief while Suruchi was the daughter of a rich king. Hence Suruchi was always favored the most by Raja while Suniti was ignored. But while Suniti was gentle & kind hearted by nature Suruchi was venomous inside.
#KrishnaLeela


The story is of a time when ideally the eldest son of the king becomes the heir to the throne. Hence the sinhasan of the Raja belonged to Dhruva.This is why Suruchi who was the 2nd wife nourished poison in her heart for Dhruva as she knew her son will never get the throne.


One day when Dhruva was just 5 years old he went on to sit on his father's lap. Suruchi, the jealous queen, got enraged and shoved him away from Raja as she never wanted Raja to shower Dhruva with his fatherly affection.


Dhruva protested questioning his step mother "why can't i sit on my own father's lap?" A furious Suruchi berated him saying "only God can allow him that privilege. Go ask him"