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EU rebuffs UK calls to ship AstraZeneca COVID vaccines from Europe


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2021-03-21T210659Z_1_LYNXMPEH2K0KG_RTROPTP_4_HEALTH-CORONAVIRUS-KANGTAI-ASTRAZENECA.JPG

FILE PHOTO: A health worker draws a dose of the AstraZeneca's coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine, at the vaccination centre in the Newcastle Eagles Community Arena, in Newcastle upon Tyne, Britain, January 30, 2021. REUTERS/Lee Smith/File Photo

 

By Francesco Guarascio

 

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union is rebuffing British government calls to ship AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines produced in a factory in the Netherlands, an EU official said on Sunday.

 

Former EU member Britain has so far administered many more vaccines than EU countries in proportion to the population.

 

"The Brits are insisting that the Halix plant in the Netherlands must deliver the drug substance produced there to them. That doesn't work," the official told Reuters.

 

The Leiden-based plant which is run by sub-contractor Halix is listed as a supplier of vaccines in both the contracts that AstraZeneca has signed with Britain and with the European Union.

 

"What is produced in Halix has to go to the EU," the official added.

 

Britain has insisted that contracts must be respected.

 

"The European Commission will know that the rest of the world is looking at the Commission, about how it conducts itself on this, and if contracts get broken, and undertakings, that is a very damaging thing to happen for a trading bloc that prides itself on the rules of law," Defence Minister Ben Wallace said on Sky News earlier in answer to a question about Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen's threat to block exports to Britain.

 

The EU official said the EU was not breaking any contract.

 

The European Union threatened on Wednesday to block exports of COVID-19 vaccines to Britain to safeguard scarce doses for its own citizens, with Von der Leyen saying the epidemiological situation was worsening.

 

AstraZeneca has not yet sought approval in the EU for Halix, but the official and a second EU source said the request was on its way.

 

Without regulatory approval, vaccines produced at Halix cannot be used in the EU.

 

An internal AstraZeneca document seen by Reuters shows that the company expects EU approval on March 25.

 

AstraZeneca has declined to comment on the amount of vaccines that are currently stockpiled at Halix.

 

The EU official said the factory had already produced shots, but was not able to quantify the output. Under the EU contract with AstraZeneca, vaccines must be produced before approval and be delivered immediately afterwards.

 

Two factories in Britain run by Oxford Biomedica and Cobra Biologics are also listed as suppliers to the EU in the contract with AstraZeneca, but no vaccine has so far been shipped from Britain to the EU, despite Brussels' earlier requests.

 

Officials have said that Cobra is not fully operational. AstraZeneca told EU officials that the UK is using a clause in its supply contract that prevents export of its vaccines until the British market is fully served, EU officials said.

 

(Reporting by Francesco Guarascio @fraguarascio; Editing by Giles Elgood)

 

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-- © Copyright Reuters 2021-03-22
 
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Posted
6 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

Hopefully this will encourage more investment in the UK by companies moving there so that they are not hijacked by the EU officialdom overseers in the future.

I doubt the companies care who they sell to.

 

 

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Posted
16 hours ago, Victornoir said:

The UK has not honored any of its production and reciprocity commitments with EU, it receives the same in return.

 

Confidence is now broken between these 2 entities with serious consequences for future exchanges.

 

Need more on that claim.

Posted
2 hours ago, cocoonclub said:

You meant the EU has “the right to this vaccine it is already paid for with tax payers  money”, didn’t you? 

Somehow I don't think so.

Posted
50 minutes ago, JBChiangRai said:

The UK very cleverly wrote a clause in that contract to say its full order must be honored before any other deliveries to any other (as yet unsigned) customers.

Which many on here have disputed and demand evidence for......I have seen it said on other forums, but the Brexiteers insist the UK would not do such a thing....it simply isn't cricket.

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Posted (edited)
8 minutes ago, Surelynot said:

You have got to give it to him........he said all this with one of his straight faces.

 

Why oh why would the interviewer not respond with questions about the NI protocol??????

Beat me to it... I was just going to say the same thing!

 

How many times has Boris tried to pull a fast one, breaking international law & signed contracts. The EU ambassador recieving full diplomatic immunity (DI) is another one that comes to mind. We signed the contract, but then told them no DI.

Edited by 2530Ubon
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Posted
2 minutes ago, Surelynot said:

Which many on here have disputed and demand evidence for......I have seen it said on other forums, but the Brexiteers insist the UK would not do such a thing....it simply isn't cricket.

Last year when  the demand for PPE exceed supply, The UK found just placing an order wasn't sufficent as sometimes for supplier would sell their PPE stock to the highest bidder

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