Teesside-manufactured coronavirus vaccine could be approved in UK as Novavax clears major hurdle

The Fujifilm Diosynth facility in Billingham, Stockton-on-Tees, which will be used as a manufacturing facility for the Novavax COVID- 19 vaccination.
The Fujifilm Diosynth facility in Billingham, Stockton-on-Tees. Credit: PA Images

A fourth Covid-19 vaccine could be approved for use in the UK within weeks as late-stage trials suggested it was 89% effective in preventing coronavirus.

The Novavax jab is to be produced by Fujifilm at their Billingham facility on Teesside. The UK has secured 60 million doses of the vaccine, which is believed to offer protection against the new UK and South African variants.

  • Alex Cunningham, Labour MP for Stockton North, says the vaccine could put Teesside "on the world map again."

It was shown to be 89.3% effective at preventing coronavirus in participants in its Phase 3 clinical trial in the UK, which involved more than 15,000 people aged between 18-84, of which 27% were older than 65, Novavax said.

The vaccine will now be assessed by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirmed, as he thanked volunteers who made the results possible.

Ben Houchen, the Conservative mayor of the Tees Valley, said: "Teesside will rise to the challenge and play its part in helping the whole of the UK.

Stan Erck, chief executive of Novavax, told the BBC the manufacturing plant in Stockton 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”.

The chairman of the Government’s Vaccine Taskforce, Clive Dix, said the results were “spectacular”, adding: “The efficacy shown against the emerging variants is also extremely encouraging.

“This is an incredible achievement that will ensure we can protect individuals in the UK and the rest of the world from this virus.”

The jab has shown around 60% effectiveness against the South African variant, which has been worrying scientists due to concerns vaccines may not work against it, but it offered 86% protection against the new UK strain.

Two vaccines have already been rolled out in the UK – from Pfizer and Oxford/AstraZeneca – while a third from Moderna has been approved for use.

The Novavax jab would be delivered in the second half of 2021 if it receives MHRA approval.