The Telegraph
Coronavirus latest news: AstraZeneca chief rejects EU accusations of ‘overpromising’ vaccine supply to bloc
Exclusive: Social distancing not needed at big events, PM to be told Quarantine and self-isolation could be replaced with daily tests Just 1 in 1,000 in England now has Covid as rates continue to plummet Why has India been hit by Covid so badly now – and where could be next? How Europe’s vaccine roll out is finally catching up with the UK Subscribe to The Telegraph for a month-long free trial AstraZeneca’s chief executive has denied accusations from the EU that the drugmaker ‘overpromised’ on vaccine supplies to the bloc. The European Commission has launched legal proceedings against the Anglo-Swedish drugmaker, alleging that it did not respect its contract or have a “reliable” plan to ensure timely deliveries of vaccine doses. Pascal Soriot said AstraZeneca it did its best to deliver as many doses as possible to the EU, and while disappointed not to have delivered more, he was proud of the company’s work and was “totally committed” to increasing supply. “We never overpromised, we communicated what we thought we would achieve at the time,” Soriot told a media briefing, adding that AstraZeneca will have delivered 50 million doses to the EU by the end of April. But Irish Health Minister, Stephen Donnelly said Astrazeneca “failed to deliver” on its commitments to the bloc. AstraZeneca, which had delivered only a quarter of what it had committed to the EU by the end of March, plans to ship a total of 100 million doses to the bloc by the end of June, far below the 300 million foreseen in the contract. Follow the latest updates below.
