- Foreign Secretary met Prime
Minister Narendra Modi today to welcome the UK and India’s
collaboration on tackling coronavirus
- New virtual UK-India vaccines hub announced to help in shared
fight against coronavirus
- The Foreign Secretary praised Prime Minister Modi’s
commitment to equitable global access to vaccines
Experts from India and the UK will join forces through a new
virtual hub to deliver vaccines for coronavirus and other deadly
viruses, the UK Foreign Secretary announced in India today (Wednesday 16 December).
The Foreign Secretary met Prime Minister Modi to discuss the UK
and India working together as a force for good and launching the
pioneering new vaccines hub which will share best practice for
regulation and clinical trials, and foster innovation. He also
visited a Delhi health clinic where Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccines
will be administered.
India’s Serum Institute is poised to make over a billion doses of
the coronavirus vaccine developed by Oxford University and
AstraZeneca. Unlike other vaccines, it can be stored at normal
fridge temperatures, making it easier and cheaper to produce and
keep – and distribute around the world.
Foreign Secretary said:
“This Serum Institute and Oxford University partnership
demonstrates the UK-India relationship at its best: a vaccine
developed in the UK and made in India, drawing our brightest
minds together to save lives as a global force for good.
“A global pandemic requires a global solution. Scientific
cooperation has made breakthroughs on coronavirus vaccines at
record-breaking pace and the UK-India vaccine hub will now build
on these innovations, to bring this crisis to an end and protect
us all against future pandemics.”
Millions of the doses made by the Serum Institute will be
distributed to the world’s poorest people via the global COVAX
initiative, in partnership with the World Health Organization
(WHO) and Gavi, the vaccine alliance.
The UK has championed equitable access to any coronavirus vaccine
for those who need it and has committed up to £619 million to
COVAX to secure both the UK’s access to coronavirus vaccines and
distribute Covid-19 vaccines across the world.
India supplies more than 50% of the world’s vaccines and 25% of
the NHS’s generic drugs. Closer UK-India cooperation on medicines
and vaccines approvals will ensure speedy access for the UK to
Indian-produced pharmaceuticals and help safeguard future
supplies to the NHS.
The new hub will enable British and Indian experts to share
knowledge on clinical trials and regulatory approvals and get
vaccines to people who need them most in a safe, secure and
energy-efficient way.
It will protect the UK and India by enhancing cooperation on the
development and distribution of coronavirus vaccines, better
aligning the international regulation of vaccines and fostering
partnerships to develop innovation ‘moonshots’ that can define
vaccine delivery over the next decade and beyond.
During his meeting with Prime Minister Modi today, the Foreign
Secretary signalled his ambition for a closer UK-India
relationship as part of a wider UK focus on our partnerships in
the Indo-Pacific. They also spoke about the 10-year roadmap which
heralds a new era for the UK and India with an ambitious plan for
an Enhanced Trade Partnership.
The Foreign Secretary also met Minister for Education Ramesh
Pokhriyal and agreed to work together on mutual recognition of
academic qualifications, starting with master’s degrees, over the
next year. The Foreign Secretary welcomed the signing of a new
agreement between the University of Edinburgh and the Indian
State of Gujarat to open a new biotechnology university in
Gujarat in July 2021. This will be the first foreign university
collaboration of its kind in India.
Notes to editors
- The UK is one of the biggest global funders of the World
Health Organization and the single biggest donor to the Coalition
for Epidemic Preparedness (CEPI) and to Gavi.
- Of the £619 million the UK has committed to COVAX, a global
initiative designed to provide countries equitable access to safe
and effective vaccines, up to £548 million will go towards
helping developing countries get coronavirus vaccines to those
who need them. COVAX is co-led by Gavi, CEPI and WHO.
- The UK and India also announced today a new memorandum of
understanding between India’s Central Drugs Standard Control
Organisation (CDSCO) and the United Kingdom Medicines and
Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (UK MHRA) agreeing to more
frequent discussions on UK-India vaccine and pharmaceutical
regulations, improving standards and sharing information to
control against the trade of unlicensed products.
- In addition, the UK and India announced a new partnership to
help UK and Indian scientists unlock the power of data, including
the data within our genes, to deliver better diagnostics and
enhanced life-saving treatments for cancer, diabetes, maternal
health challenges and rare diseases.
