A fourth Covid-19 vaccine could be approved for use in the UK within the next couple of weeks trials suggest it is 89 per cent effective in preventing coronavirus.
The Novavax jab, which is believed to offer protection against the new UK and South African variants, would be delivered in the second half of 2021 if it receives MHRA approval.
In an interview with the BBC, Stan Erck, chief executive of Novavax, the manufacturing plant in Teeside should be up and running by March or April, with the company hoping to get approval for the vaccine from the MHRA around the same time.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the NHS stands ready to roll out the vaccine if it is approved, which he said would provide a “significant boost to our vaccination programme and another weapon in our arsenal to beat this awful virus”.
There are currently two vaccines being rolled out in the UK – from Pfizer and Oxford/AstraZeneca – while a third from Moderna has been approved for use and is expected to be delivered in the Spring.
