The Week Ahead: Look out for GDP data, Ocado, AstraZ, Twitter and Ted Baker February 8, 2021 Start your week informed: here are the announcements and results to look out for this week. UK GDP: A double dip recession is looming After a fairly decent third quarter, and an expansion of 16 per cent, the UK economy has had a much more troubled fourth quarter, with the likelihood that we may well [...]
Astrazeneca vaccine works against Kent Covid variant February 5, 2021 The Astrazeneca vaccine currently being deployed in the UK’s largest ever immunisation programme works against the coronavirus variant first identified in Kent, researchers have found. Scientists from Oxford University, working in collaboration with the British-Swedish firm, said the jab has a similar efficacy against the new Covid variant compared to the original coronavirus strain it was [...]
Which Covid vaccines has the UK government ordered? February 4, 2021 The UK passed a significant milestone yesterday after health secretary Matt Hancock announced that more than 10m people across the country have now received their first dose of the coronavirus vaccine. The news buoyed hopes of a return to normality by the summer, with Britain now firmly ahead of targets to vaccinate the most vulnerable [...]
Astrazeneca to roll out ‘next generation’ vaccine for Covid mutations by autumn February 3, 2021 Astrazeneca aims to produce a “next generation” Covid-19 vaccine especially suited to new mutations as soon as the autumn, a senior executive said today. Mene Pangalos, a senior research chief at the British-Swedish firm, said Astrazeneca will start developing a new vaccine for the mutated strains and will look to make them public “as rapidly [...]
Covid-19: Oxford-Astrazeneca vaccine could cut transmission by two-thirds February 2, 2021 The Oxford University/Astrazeneca Covid-19 vaccine could cut the transmission of infections by two-thirds and a three-month delay between doses does not reduce efficacy, a new report has found. A pre-print paper published by Oxford and the Lancet found there was a 67 per cent reduction in positive swabs among those vaccinated. The research also found [...]
EU approves Astrazeneca vaccine for all over-18s January 29, 2021 The EU drugs regulator has approved the use of the Astrazeneca Covid vaccine for all people over the age of 18. The green light from the European Medicines Agency means Astrazeneca vaccine is the third to be approved by the EU, after those developed by Pfizer/Biontech and Moderna. The move follows an increasingly bitter dispute [...]
EU says AstraZeneca contract contains ‘binding orders’ as vaccine row intensifies January 29, 2021 The European Union’s contract with AstraZeneca for its Covid-19 vaccine contains binding orders, the EU Commission head said on Friday. Ursula von der Leyen has demanded a plausible explanation from the UK-based vaccine maker for delivery hold-ups, describing the contract as “crystal clear”. AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot defended the drug maker earlier this week, claiming [...]
EU and AstraZeneca hold crisis talks to resolve Covid vaccines row January 28, 2021 The EU and UK-based Covid vaccine maker AstraZeneca have vowed to resolve clashes over supply shortages after “constructive” crisis talks. Production issues means that AstraZeneca can deliver only a fraction of the doses promised to the EU in the first quarter of the year, leading to shortages across the 27-member bloc. The EU has remained [...]
Covid-19 has shown it is time to invest in Britain’s scientists January 6, 2021 Let’s start the New Year with a very positive point. The speed of scientific innovation seems to be accelerating sharply. And it is innovation which ultimately drives our health, wealth and well-being. The types of problems which have previously taken years or even decades to solve are being cracked in record times. The development of [...]
UK begins rollout of Oxford-Astrazeneca Covid-19 vaccine January 4, 2021 The UK will today begin Covid-19 vaccinations using the vaccine developed by Astrazeneca and the University of Oxford. Britain last week became the first country in the world to authorise the use of the vaccine after it was given the green light by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). The government has secured [...]