Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the delays to completing the contract to execute the signed Head of Terms from June 2022 between the Government and Moderna for the manufacturer to open a vaccines research and manufacturing centre in the UK; and what assessment he has made of the impact of those delays on progress in delivering that centre.

The Government was pleased to sign the Heads of Terms agreement back in June, and since then has been working at pace with Moderna to negotiate a strategic partnership to support the UK’s vaccine resilience. During this time, relevant Ministers have been regularly kept informed of progress, and will continue to receive full briefings as the contract progresses.