The government of the United Kingdom has entered partnerships with Pfizer and Valneva to secure doses of several promising COVID-19 vaccines and  COVID-19 neutralising antibody treatments from AstraZeneca.

The UK Government has entered partnerships with BioNtech/Pfizer and Valneva who are already developing vaccines to protect against COVID-19.

The government has secured access to three different types of COVID-19 vaccines that are being developed in the UK and abroad, which the UK Business Secretary Alok Sharma said should give the UK the most likely chance of getting access to a safe and effective vaccine at the quickest speed.

Sharma said: “The hunt to find a vaccine is a truly global endeavour and we are doing everything we can to ensure the British public get access to a safe and effective coronavirus vaccine as soon as possible. This new partnership with some of the world’s foremost pharmaceutical and vaccine companies will ensure the UK has the best chance possible of securing a vaccine that protects those most at risk.

“The public can also play their part in vaccine research through the new NHS vaccine research register. By signing up and participating in important clinical studies, together we can speed up vaccine research and be part of history.”

The government is expected to contribute to UK clinical trial costs through its partnership with Valneva and is negotiating funding to expand the latter’s manufacturing facility in Livingston, Scotland. The proposed increase in manufacturing capacity could potentially supply up to 100 million vaccine doses to the UK and internationally, while also providing high skilled jobs and contributing to the local economy.

This announcement follows an existing global licensing agreement signed with AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford to research, develop and manufacture a COVID-19 vaccine for the UK public through which AstraZeneca will produce 100 million doses for the UK in total.