vials with Covid-19 Vaccine stickers attached and syringes, with
the logo of the University of Oxford and its partner British
pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, on November 17, 2020. JUSTIN
TALLIS / AFP
The EU’s 27 member countries aim to start Covid-19
vaccinations on “the same day” in a sign of unity, possibly a day
or two before Christmas, European Commission chief Ursula von der
Leyen said Wednesday.
Her statement to the European Parliament came as pressure
mounted on the bloc to catch up with the United States and Britain,
which have already started inoculating people with a vaccine made
by Pfizer and BioNTech.
“To get to the end of the pandemic, we will need up to 70
percent of the population vaccinated. This is a huge task, a big
task. So let’s start as soon as possible with the vaccination
together, as 27, with a start at the same day,” von der Leyen told
MEPs.
Von der Leyen emphasised that the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was
the first of six potential vaccines for which the EU has secured
contracts.
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“Finally, within a week, the first vaccine will be authorised so
that vaccinations can start immediately, and more will follow in
the new year,” she said.
The European Medicines Agency (EMA), which regulates the release
of medicines in the EU, is bringing forward to next Monday a
special meeting originally planned a week later to discuss
conditional approval for the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.
EU officials said that, if that EMA meeting gives a green light,
the vaccine would be authorised two days later.
As EU citizens watched first Britain last week then the US this
week start vaccinations, Germany — home to BioNTech and von der
Leyen — pressed for the EMA to allow the jab to be made available
before Christmas.
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EU states have the option of individually going ahead with
vaccinations earlier under EMA emergency rules, but the European
Commission wants a coordinated roll-out across the bloc to ensure
no member state is left behind.
– ‘Christmas gift’ – With the EMA meeting
brought forward, “this means that this vaccine will be the
Christmas gift for all Europeans if everything goes well,” said the
European commissioner in charge of internal security, Margaritis
Schinas.
Germany’s European affairs minister, Michael Roth, whose country
holds the rotating EU presidency, told MEPs that Europe was intent
more on getting the vaccination roll-out right rather than being
first.
“We need to also be careful that we don’t succumb to political
pressures, when it comes to the authorisation processes,” he
said.
A vaccination rate of 60-70 percent was needed to protect the EU
from the virus, meaning a majority of EU citizens needed to trust
the jabs that would be on offer, Roth explained.
“We need to monitor the progress of a vaccination programme so
that everybody knows what happens in cases of vaccination and that
new fears don’t arise,” he said.
Von der Leyen stressed that the European Union was working to
also give countries outside the bloc access to the vaccines.
“In total, we have bought more than enough doses for everyone in
Europe. And we will be able to support our neighbours and our
partners around the world through COVAX so that no one is left
behind.”
COVAX is an initiative launched by the World Health
Organization, the European Commission and France to ensure that
vaccines proven to be effective and safe are made available to all
countries, and not only rich ones able to pre-emptively buy up
doses.
AFP
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