UK to fast-track vaccine updates to combat new Covid-19 variants

The guidance, developed by the MHRA and Access, lays out what information the medicines regulators would need to approve any modifications to authorised Covid-19 vaccines, should virus mutations make them less effective at preventing the disease.

“Our priority is to get effective vaccines to the public in as short a time as possible, without compromising on safety. Should any modifications to authorised Covid-19 vaccines be necessary, this regulatory approach should help to do just that," said Dr Christian Schneider, MHRA chief scientific officer.

“The announcement today also demonstrates the strength of our international partnerships with other regulators and how our global work can help ensure faster access to life-saving vaccines in the UK and around the world. The public should be confident that no vaccine would be approved unless the expected high standards of safety, quality and effectiveness are met," he said.

The approach will be based on the tried and tested regulatory process used for seasonal flu vaccines, for which annual modifications are needed to match the strains circulating each year.

According to the latest guidance, vaccine manufacturers would need to provide robust evidence that the modified vaccine produces an immune response, but time-consuming clinical studies that do not add to the regulatory understanding of a vaccine safety, quality or effectiveness would not be needed.

This is because researchers are now better able to measure protection by looking at antibodies in the blood following vaccination, reducing the need to wait and see whether or not people in a trial become infected with the disease, the MHRA explained.