EU: ‘Vaccine nationalism not helpful’ says Labour MP

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Rachel Reeves, Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, argued against threats made by Ursula von der Leyen to ban vaccine exports to the UK as the issue of vaccine nationalism reared its head once again. Ms Reeves said that she voted for the Brexit deal in December and was looking for ways to work with Europe moving on from the agreement. But the Labour MP said the overly defensive policy will not help tackle the coronavirus since it affects everyone. 

Speaking on talkRADIO, host Julia Hartley-Brewer asked: “Do you think the EU would be right if they decided not to export vaccines to the UK or anywhere else but kept them for their own people?

“Given how much further they behind they are on the vaccine rollout?”

Ms Reeves replied: “I voted for the Government’s trade and cooperation agreement, their Brexit deal in December last year so that debate has definitely moved on. 

“I’ve just got to make that deal work now, I wouldn’t support export bans from the EU or anywhere else. 

“Vaccine nationalism is not going to protect our people. 

“We need countries around the world getting vaccinated and using vaccines that are proven to be working. 

“And I would urge you to drive down and to get yourself vaccinated.”

Ms Reeves added on her personal Twitter account that families need to be front and centre of a public inquiry into the handling of the pandemic by the Government. 

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European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned that the EU would review its vaccine exports to countries that have a higher vaccination rate than they do if their supplies do not improve. 

The threat was perceived as a thinly-veiled warning to the UK who has one of the best vaccination rates in the world. 

In response, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the EU should “stand by its commitments” as export bans were only established as a way to create transparency rather than to be actually used according to the EU themselves. 

The PM also made clear on March 8 that the UK has not blocked any export of vaccine doses to the EU to show the UK has not acted improperly. 

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It comes as European countries have paused the rollout of the AstraZeneca vaccine amid fears it causes fatal blood clots for those vaccinated.

However, the European Medicines Agency found the vaccine is “safe and effective” to use and urged countries to reverse their ban. 

Vaccine hesitancy is also high in France and Germany as millions of doses remain in storage unused. 

The EMA found that only 30 cases of blood clotting were found in five million vaccinations. 

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