The Daily Mail has reported positively today on UK aid funding for research to tackle the coronavirus outbreak.
Its article focuses on the British doctor overseeing the hunt for a vaccine, Melanie Saville, who talked about how UK aid was helping the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) to fast-track its work.
This follows the announcement by Prime Minister Boris Johnson last week, that the UK was committing £273 million from the aid budget to research the virus, including £210 million to work on a potential vaccine. The Daily Mail reported that this made the UK the world’s biggest donor to CEPI in its hunt for a vaccine for this disease.
Dr Melanie Saville was quoted as saying a vaccine could be ready by January 2021, with initial use prioritised for healthcare workers and the most vulnerable. Dr Saville went on to say that aid was also being used to ensure global access to vaccines, with the UK working closely with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Vaccine Alliance (GAVI).
Further positive reaction to last week’s announcement by the PM, based around comments from US-based vaccine scientist Dr Kate Broderick, has also been covered widely in Scottish media. Scot Dr Broderick leads a team at the pharmaceutical company Inovio in San Diego, California, who are working around the clock to have a DNA vaccine ready by the end of the year.
The Press & Journal, the Dundee Courier, The Times and The Scotsman all carry articles this morning reporting on how Dr Broderick has welcomed the UK government’s £210 million coronavirus vaccine funding announcement. The scientist hails the funding pledge as a ‘phenomenal gesture’ and discusses how the facts her husband is “immune-compromised”, and her sister is a nurse working with coronavirus patients in Glasgow, are helping drive her quest to develop one million vaccines by December.
Bauer Radio carried a report on its news bulletins across their stations in Scotland, including Forth FM, on Monday, as did Fife commercial radio station Kingdom FM.