The EU's Von Der Leyen now trying to blame the UK failing on "vaccine safety" to excuse their failings

[Rosehip10]

Von Der Leyen needs to take some ownership and responsibility for this - sick of her accusing the UK when the issues for Europe are shit EU procument and slow EMA vaccine approval

www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/02/ursula-von-der-leyen-accuses-uk-of-compromising-on-vaccine-safety

As long as we get the Pfizer vaccine that we ordered I can't get too wound up about it. Politicians will always try to pass the buck and evade blame

But the EU has come
To the same decision that the UK has about the vaccines

Exactly - she is an idiot

No surprises. The German media has turned on her

What an openly resentful thing to say!

How can she assess with any certainty the speed at which the UK has worked?

Poland only want to use AZ in under 60’s, Austria will only use it on under 65’s, so the most vulnerable groups will have wait longer.

Well, this is a bare-faced lie:

“Some countries started to vaccinate a little before Europe, it is true,” she said, asked about the UK. “But they resorted to emergency, 24-hour marketing authorisation procedures.

“The commission and the member states agreed not to compromise with the safety and efficacy requirements linked to the authorisation of a vaccine. Time had to be taken to analyse the data, which, even minimised, takes three to four weeks.

The UK government formally asked the MHRA to start reviewing OX/AZ on 27th Nov, and approval was granted on 30th Dec. This is longer than the EMA took.

The weird thing is that there is a genuine possible criticism to be made (delay of 2nd dose) and yet I don't see this mentioned at all, admit I started to skim read second half of article.

@BentBastard

But the EU has come To the same decision that the UK has about the vaccines

Yep. Just took 5 precious weeks longer to get around to it.

@Baileysforchristmas

Poland only want to use AZ in under 60’s, Austria will only use it on under 65’s, so the most vulnerable groups will have wait longer.

That is of course the decision those countries are entitled to make but it has been licensed in the EU for all adult age groups.

Well it's not our problem. If EU citizens are willing to wait longer than that is up to them. If Ursula VdL gets her kicks by trying to wind up the UK let's leave her to it. She is the EU's problem.

Hopefully the UK government won't respond.

@Waspnest

Well it's not our problem. If EU citizens are willing to wait longer than that is up to them. If Ursula VdL gets her kicks by trying to wind up the UK let's leave her to it. She is the EU's problem.

Hopefully the UK government won't respond.

It is our problem is UK people read this and decide not to get the vaccine because UK has not been thorough and it's not safe.

It is our problem is UK people read this and decide not to get the vaccine because UK has not been thorough and it's not safe.

How many Brits - probably the most pro-vaccine population in the continent - are gong to have their opinions swayed by that well-known immunologist, Prof. Ursula Von der Leyen?

I think UvdL has been regarded as weak in Germany ever since she was defence minister and mishandled, well, nearly everything. Luckily for her she's a very close ally of Merkel.

I can’t wait to have the AZ vaccine. Germany are now looking at getting vaccines from Russia and China. Good luck to them. I know which vaccine I would trust, no matter what the EU say.

@IcedPurple

It is our problem is UK people read this and decide not to get the vaccine because UK has not been thorough and it's not safe.

How many Brits - probably the most pro-vaccine population in the continent - are gong to have their opinions swayed by that well-known immunologist, Prof. Ursula Von der Leyen?

They might have they're opinion swayed by a Guardian article.

I'm not saying there's any sense to it but if there is one thing social media has taught me it's that we are not at all good a reading Beyond headlines and key words.

*their. Fed up with autocorrect deciding I mean they're

I don't think many UK people will even read it. I said earlier in the thread, those of us MN obsessives who are interested in this issue will also have followed all the ins and outs and will (probably) still conclude that the vaccines are effective.

Most of the public won't even know what she's said.

Quite.

(Although maybe those very pro EU? Irl though people may think Brexit a bad idea for practical reasons I have never met fanatical pro EU like you see here and on Twitter. )

But on here, the remainers prided themselves on doing the research so presumably they'd also do that for vaccine efficacy.

Sorry, that was aimed at Bent. I try not to use @ because nobody wants to get loads of notifications. I have mine switched off.

"Luckily for her she's a very close ally of Merkel."

Mutti is on the downslope though, so VdL can't rely on her support much longer

@Waspnest

But on here, the remainers prided themselves on doing the research so presumably they'd also do that for vaccine efficacy.

Not sure what you mean or how Remainers come in to it, sorry.

so. Are we going to export from AZ plants in this country? Does anyone know?

Yes sorry, I think that was more a comment about pro EU people (of whom there were many on here) being more likely to believe UVdL. I would assume those people who'd presumably researched the EU before voting remain would also research vaccine efficacy.

But you're right, that isn't what you were commenting on.