Boris Johnson under fire over praise for 'greed' in Covid vaccine development

Boris Johnson has been criticised for remarks he made at the 1922 Committee of Conservative MPs on Tuesday. Credit: PA Wire/PA Images

Boris Johnson has come under fire after he joked "greed" and capitalism were behind the success of the UK's coronavirus vaccine rollout.

The prime minister made the remarks at a private meeting of Conservative MPs, but hastily sought to backtrack as he praised AstraZeneca for supplying the Oxford vaccine at cost.

The European Union and member states has threatened to block exports of the vaccine to the UK amid claims Britain has not delivered its fair share of vaccine to EU member states.

Mr Johnson's remarks are likely to inflame tensions with EU member states - in particular France and Germany, who have both voiced support for a possible export ban to Britain.

Following the comments at the 1922 Committee on Tuesday night, the Global Justice Now campaign, which is campaigning for wider international access to jabs, hit out at the Prime Minister.

(PA Graphics) Credit: PA Graphics

The organisation’s director Nick Dearden said: “The Prime Minister will call this comment a slip of the tongue, but it’s an incredibly revealing remark.

“It shows just how warped his understanding of this crisis is.

“We have a vaccine because of massive public investment and the remarkable work of scientists at publicly-funded universities. We’ve rolled it out because of our incredible National Health Service.

“Greed, however, drove big pharma to privatise this work and withhold doses from millions worldwide to protect their profits.

“And, if Boris Johnson keeps letting it happen, there’ll be more coronavirus mutations that could send us back to square one.”

Labour Mayor of Greater Manchester and former health secretary Andy Burnham said: “Celebrating ‘greed’ in a pandemic? Same old Tories.”

Plaid Cymru’s Westminster leader Liz Saville Roberts said: “It’s in the throwaway comments that the PM reveals himself. Greed will destroy us.”

Labour MP Barry Sheerman said the comments were “no surprise” as “everyone who knows our Prime Minister well understands his admiration of selfishness and greed'”.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced the partial lockdown will take effect on Monday and last until the end of November Credit: Michael Kappeler/dpa via AP

Former shadow cabinet minister Richard Burgon said Mr Johnson was “wrong” as “billions in public funds went into developing the vaccines”.

“Now the vaccine patents must be waived to ramp up production and save lives all across the world,” the Labour MP said.

The comments also risk inflaming a row with the European Commission over access to vaccines, with the organisation’s president Ursula von der Leyen threatening a ban on exports of jabs to the UK because it is angry that AstraZeneca has not supplied the doses expected for the bloc.

Home Secretary Priti Patel defended the role played by pharmaceutical companies.

She told Sky News: “The Prime Minister always acknowledges the strong success we’ve had in terms of the vaccine, not just the rollout, which is incredible, but also our ability as a country to develop the vaccine, the role that pharmaceutical companies and science and technology has played in that.

“And actually I think that speaks to a great strength we have as a country.

“And linked to that, of course, look at our contributions to Covax, the international scheme, to get the vaccine supplies elsewhere and demonstrate that we are a very, very strong force for good internationally when it comes to vaccines, science and pharmaceutical development.”