Astrazeneca vaccine suspended..... Not proven to be linked to the jab yet, but investigations are ongoing *title edited by GNHQ*

the idea that EU politicians are looking for ways to undermine the UK’s pandemic response, or even make.......decisions to achieve the same aim......

Your opinion only Alegrias.
And not what the BBC just reported a few minutes ago. Ursula von der Leyen has threatened to cut off export of Covid19 jabs to Britain. The BBC said there will be a massive political row over this. Reported about five minutes ago, BBC News at One.

Latest news from The Telegraph

The European Union has threatened to restrict vaccine exports to the UK to "make sure Europeans are vaccinated as soon as possible".

Speaking on Wednesday Ursula von der Leyen, head of the bloc's executive arm, said "all options are on the table" to boost the EU's stuttering immunisation campaign, including moves to halt exports to countries which "have higher vaccination rates than us", including the UK.

Well the EU have got their revenge for Brexit and our vaccine roll out success.
They’ve thrown a massive big spanner in the works to hold us back & it’s worked.

Nice one EU

If UK citizens are frightened to have it because of what is happening in Europe, our wonderful roll out will stall.

This is my fear too.

If the EU set out to deliberately scupper our vaccination programme, they couldn’t have done a better job. Shameful.

I believe deliveries of the Moderna one are due here soon, which along with the Pfizer one means we have alternatives if too many people reject the AZ one.

What a mess.

Ms Van dear Leyen has said “the EU could seize production of vaccines and suspend intellectual property rights”

source @PoliticsForAll

Is it my imagination or is the EU going slightly bonkers over Covid/vaccinations? Could it be that Oxford Astra Zeneca is a non-profit vaccine as opposed to big bucks for Pfizer?

Italy, France and Germany are seeing an increase in daily cases!

Sadly GP practices are now reporting up to 50% non attendees for the AZ jab today. This is the fall out from Europe's targeting the AZ vaccine, but not the Pfizer one, which has had more patients with clots. It is still a very insignificant number, and in fact less than would be expected in that population range without the vaccine. It UK citizens are frightened to have it because of what is happening in Europe, our wonderful roll out will stall.

Well - all the more for us, I guess, but vaccinating the world is in everyone's interests. It is all quite ridiculous.

The idea that even one vaccination has been ditched because of all this nonsense makes me sick.

Scientists and politicians in Britain have defended the AstraZeneca vaccine's record. Professor Dame Clare Gerada, one of the UK's leading doctors and a former president of the Royal College of GPs, accused Europe's leaders of "weaponising" fears over the jab and said they should "get a grip".

Honestly isn’t this just a right old Muldoon’s picnic? It’s so sad because surely people’s lives in Europe are at risk.

I agree with your first post Laura but not your second. We were seen as a positive influence in the EU but we threw that all away when we decided to leave. My many friends and colleagues in EU countries are bemused at our decision.

But the idea that EU politicians are looking for ways to undermine the UK's pandemic response, or even make opportunistic decisions to achieve the same aim, because they are still smarting about Brexit is, quite frankly, just laughable.

BTW JE- the Merkel story. When the AZ vaccine wasn't recommended for her age group by the German authorities, she said she wouldn't be getting it. When the authorities changed the advice, she said she would. So, abiding by her country's experts' opinions and not being political about it; quite the opposite of what you said.

Germany's national disease centre warned that the country is now in a third wave that could see it break previous records by Easter, and there were also warnings that suspending the vaccine for just one week could cost the economy £1.7 billion.

In France, Jean Castex, the prime minister, said new Covid variants meant the country was "in a sort of third wave".

Frank Ulrich Montgomery, the German head of the World Medical Association, said: "The bottom line, sadly, is that this good and effective vaccine is not being accepted by the public in many countries because of the row and the suspension."

A man waits at a vaccination centre in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, south-western France, where a sign reads: 'No AstraZeneca vaccinations today'.

The roll out in the EU has, sadly, been an utter shambles. The sooner Europe (everyone) gets vaccinated the safer we will ALL be. Especially from mutant viruses which is a concern in case tweaking of the vaccine doesn’t continue to protect.

First we had the assertion from Macron that the AZ vaccine wasn’t effective for the over 65s.
This was followed by Angela Merkel publicly declaring that at 66 years old, she wouldn’t be having it.
She then embarrassingly backtracked and declared that she would!

What is all that if it’s not political ?

Yes Cs783 money talks. Perhaps a nice pension pot for retiring politicians ???

(Firecracker123 I’m referring to your comment on commercial interests)

And how is my post above ‘fake news’?

Firecracker123 I wondered that too. The doubts thrown up over AZ seem very poorly founded and out of all proportion.

A diplomatic row broke out not long ago after Charles Michel, the European Council president, incorrectly claimed that the UK had imposed an ‘outright ban’ on the export of Covid19 vaccinations. He was corrected by both Boris Johnson and Dominic Raab.

How is this not political? How is this not designed to discredit the UK?

11:55growstuff

How do you know?

I see the "fake news" merchants are at it again. I'm fed up with it. No, the dastardly EU hasn't suspended AZ vaccines for political reasons.

Pressed too soon. There are many petty politicians within the EU who want to see the UK fail.

I beg to differ Alegrias. We have family and friends in the Netherlands who say we were very important to the Netherlands who saw the UK as a steadying influence within the EU.
An old friend in Sweden says much the same.

Can they honestly still be so petty over Brexit and our hugely successful vaccine rollout programme?

No, they're not.

We're really not that important, honestly!

I was wondering the same thing about that particular poster LauraNorder. The comments aren’t helpful are they?

I think it’s shameful and very irresponsible of certain EU countries to plant seeds of doubt about the AZ vaccine.

The trouble is their shenanigans could have an adverse effect on vaccination programmes in many countries including ours which is going brilliantly well.
We have to hope though that most people will have the sense to ignore the noises coming from Europe.

France and Germany in particular appear to be perusing an agenda to discredit the Astra Zeneca vaccine.
Why? Is it political?

Can they honestly still be so petty over Brexit and our hugely successful vaccine rollout programme?

The EU petty? Surely not!

Perhaps it's pressure from the pharmaceutical companies in the EU especially France, it might just be about money and profits. The Oxford Astrazeneca is being sold at cost but the Pfizer vaccine and other vaccines are not. Perhaps some people are getting a backhander by pushing the other vaccines and smearing the Astrazeneca one.