EU hits goal of delivering vaccines for 70% of adults

Commission president says Brussels has 'kept its word'

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, says the EU joint vaccine purchasing scheme has delivered 330 million Covid-19 vaccines. EPA

The EU has hit its target of delivering enough coronavirus vaccines for 70 per cent of the adult population.

On Saturday, European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen said the bloc had “kept its word".

The 27 EU member state governments are responsible for administering the vaccines through the EU's joint vaccine purchasing scheme.

It has delivered 330 million Pfizer-BioNTech doses, 100 million AstraZeneca, 50 million from Moderna and 20 million Johnson & Johnson.

“This weekend, we delivered enough vaccine to member states to fully vaccinate at least 70 per cent of the adult population this month,” Ms Von der Leyen said.

“By tomorrow, some 500 million doses will have been distributed to all regions of Europe.

“Covid-19 is not yet defeated. But we are prepared to continue supplying – also against new variants. Now the member states must do everything they can to ensure that vaccinations move forward. Only then will we all be safe.”

When the coronavirus epidemic hit Europe last year, the commission – the executive branch of the EU, with little previous role in health policy – stepped in to co-ordinate a joint buying programme for members.

It was initially criticised for having been slow to get into gear and to negotiate contracts with vaccine suppliers, and the plan was hampered later when some firms fell short in deliveries.

But as the industry raced to boost production of the newly developed vaccines, purchases started flowing in.

“The EU is delivering,” she said. “Our vaccination campaign has accelerated tremendously since the beginning of the year. The joint approach is a success. Only together can we come out of this crisis well.”

In addition to the initial rollout goal, the EU contributes to the international Covax plan to supply doses to poorer countries and it has pre-ordered many more vaccines for next year as insurance against the rise of variants.

But the vaccination campaign will only be a success if member state governments and their public health systems manage to distribute the doses they are now receiving from the EU plan.

According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, the proportion of adults aged 18 years or over fully vaccinated in the EU and European Economic Area is still just over 44 per cent.

Despite the vaccine rollout, Spain and the Netherlands were forced to announce the return of Covid-19 restrictions on Saturday.

After an “exponential” rise in cases in recent days, officials in the north-eastern Spanish region of Catalonia said they had no choice but to re-impose restrictions.

Nightclubs will be closed as of this weekend and a negative Covid-19 test or proof of vaccination will be needed to take part in outdoor activities involving more than 500 people.

“The pandemic has not ended, the new variants are very contagious and we still have significant segments of the population that are not vaccinated,” Patricia Plaja, a spokeswoman for the Catalonia regional government said.

In the Netherlands, infections have risen sevenfold in a week, a surge officials have blamed on the Delta variant.

Prime Minister Mark Rutte has ordered the closure of all nightclubs and the curbing of restaurant hours, with visitors to eateries now required to adhere to a 1.5-metre social distancing rule.