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Just days after the vaccine was rolled out across the UK, the pharmaceutical company have said deliveries to Britain will be reduced. This will affect the number of doses previously expected to be delivered by the end of June.

In a statement, Moderna said: “The trajectory of vaccine manufacturing ramp-up is not linear, and despite best efforts, there is a shortfall in previously estimated doses.

“Vaccine manufacturing is a highly complex process and a number of elements, including human and material resources, have factored into this volatility.”

The company also revealed Canada – which is entering its third wave of the pandemic – would receive nearly half of its expected deliveries.

Canada had earlier said the drugmaker would be delivering only 650,000 doses by April end as opposed to 1.2 million.

One to two million doses of the 12.3 million doses scheduled for delivery in the second quarter would be delayed until the third.

Patricia Gauthier, an executive at Moderna Canada, said: “Vaccine manufacturing is a highly complex process and a number of elements, including human and material resources have factored into this volatility.

This week, as the Moderna vaccine started to be administered, Professor Stephen Powis, medical director of NHS England, said having “a third jab in our armoury” marked another “milestone” in the vaccine programme.

The NHS said the Moderna and Pfizer jabs would be used for people under-30 who were due to receive the AstraZeneca vaccine.

This came after the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation recommended that under-30s should be offered an alternative to the AstraZeneca vaccine amid concerns over blood clots.

The NHS vaccine booking website explains: “If you’re under 30, you will not be offered appointments for the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine.

“There may be fewer appointments available or you may have to travel further.”

The Moderna vaccine is a two-dose jab given at an interval of between four and 12 weeks.

According to trial results, the US-developed vaccine was 94.1 percent effective against the disease and was 100 percent effective against severe Covid-19.

The Moderna vaccine was the third jab to be approved by the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in February.

MHRA Chief Executive Dr June Raine said at the time of approval: “Having a third COVID-19 vaccine approved for supply following a robust and thorough assessment of all the available data is an important goal to have achieved and I am proud that the agency has helped to make this a reality.

“The progress we are now making for vaccines on the regulatory front, whilst not cutting any corners, is helping in our global fight against this disease and ultimately helping to save lives.

“I want to echo that our goal is always to put the protection of the public first.

“Once in use, all COVID-19 vaccines are continually monitored by the MHRA.

“This ensures that the benefits in protecting people against COVID-19 continue to far outweigh any potential side-effects.”

To date, more than 30,000,000 people in the UK have received their first dose of a coronavirus vaccine.

More than 8,000,000 people have received their second jab.

People over the age of 45 are now being invited to book their Covid vaccine appointments.

The UK Government is aiming to offer all adults a first vaccine dose by the end of July 2021.

More to follow…

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