The European Commission is set to announce further restrictions on the Covid-19 vaccine as tensions rise over its supply.
It's reported that the main issue of contention is between the UK and the EU, with the European Commission believing that AstraZeneca has favoured the UK in terms of its contract at the expense of Europe.
The pharmaceutical company has experienced highly-publicised production and supply delays, but European officials are upset that AstraZeneca has still been able to deliver its UK contract while falling short on its commitment to the EU.
The commission is expected to unveil new proposals that would target vaccine manufacturers that fail to meet their delivery schedules and countries that import EU vaccines but refuse to export vaccine doses to Europe.
The new measures are aimed at making vaccine trade reciprocal and proportional.
The EU is saying that Europe has exported over 40 million doses around the world, but Europeans have only received 70 million doses to date.
The UK's vaccination programme has seen an estimated 42.7 shots administered per 100 people, compared to the EU’s 10.4.
On Saturday, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen threatened to halt exports of AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccines if the bloc did not receive its promised deliveries first.
“We have the option of banning a planned export. That’s the message to AstraZeneca: you fulfil your contract with Europe first before," she said.
Talks have begun between the European Commission, AstraZeneca and the UK over the prioritisation of vaccines, and plans to distribute millions of doses that may be ready to ship from a Dutch facility this week.
Member states of the EU, including Ireland, have expressed concern about the impact that an escalating export ban could have.
