Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to help ensure effective global efforts to prevent the waste of covid-19 vaccines as a result of expiration dates.

The UK is working with COVAX and its international partners, including the World Health Organisation and UNICEF in support of country governments, to allocate vaccines according to need, and ensure rapid rollout of doses to priority groups and prevent wastage. Individual countries will decide whether they wish to accept vaccines, whether donated bilaterally or allocated by COVAX.

The capacity of health systems in delivering doses, and their expiry dates are taken into account in these decisions. At country level, support includes strengthening secure and resilient supply chains for distribution, administering COVID-19 vaccines, including in hard-to-reach locations, and working with communities to build vaccine confidence. We are also engaging through our humanitarian networks to ensure that delivery planning and financing addresses the challenges of delivery in fragile environments. We monitor delivery progress and challenges through our country network and engagement with regional agencies.