Recommendation 8

When we launched this inquiry, in October 2020, it was not known whether there would ever be effective vaccines against covid-19. Today, less than a year later, all UK adults have been offered full immunisation, and 41 percent of the global population has received at least one dose. This is a huge achievement for global scientific cooperation. The UK has made an important contribution, and the UK- backed AstraZeneca vaccine is responsible for the majority of COVAX vaccinations in lower-income countries. However, these achievements are undermined by the failure to ensure anything close to global equity in access. While democratic governments have responded to the needs of their electorates, it is now time to turn our attention overseas. Promoting rapid vaccine access globally is not just morally right, but is clearly in the UK’s interest. It is necessary in order to build prosperous Global Health, Global Britain 23 and healthy societies, preserve the safe travel that underpins the global economy, fend off the threat of new variants, and counter autocracies that are using vaccines to gain influence.

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