UK refuses to sign global vaccine treaty, The Telegraph reports
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[May 09, 2024]
(Reuters) - Britain is refusing to sign the World Health
Organization's (WHO) pandemic accord because the country says it would
have to give away a fifth of its vaccines, the Telegraph reported on
Wednesday.
According to a draft of the pandemic accord being negotiated at the WHO,
richer countries should be asked to pull their weight in helping the
world cope with pandemics, including reserving 20% of tests, treatments
and vaccines for the WHO to distribute in poorer countries during
emergencies.
"We will only support the adoption of the accord and accept it on behalf
of the UK, if it is firmly in the UK national interest and respects
national sovereignty," a spokesperson for Britain's Department of Health
and Social Care said in a statement to Reuters.
The spokesperson did not comment on the details of the specific
proposals from the accord, adding that "no proposals have been agreed."
The WHO did not immediately respond to Reuters request for comment.
The new pact and a series of updates to existing rules for dealing with
pandemics from the WHO are intended to shore up the world's defenses
against new pathogens after the COVID-19 pandemic killed millions of
people.
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Syringes with doses of the COVID-19 booster vaccine are seen amid
the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, at Smallthorne
Community Centre in Stoke-on-Trent, Britain, December 15, 2021.
REUTERS/Carl Recine/File Photo
One of the main points of
disagreement between wealthy countries and developing states is the
vexed issue of sharing drugs and vaccines fairly.
Countries are due to finalize negotiations on the accord on May 10,
with a view to adopting it at the WHO's annual meeting later this
month.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said last week that
countries need to agree to the accord within the deadline to help
fight future pandemics, adding that countries who did not fully
agree with the text to at least refrain from blocking consensus
among WHO's 194 member states.
(Reporting by Rishabh Jaiswal and Urvi Dugar in Bengaluru; Editing
by Sonali Paul and Aurora Ellis)
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