So far, the European Union has published three contracts signed with laboratories supplying vaccines, all cut off from sensitive elements.
In order to strengthen transparency on the content of contracts, the Secretary of State for European Affairs Clément Beaune pleaded this morning at the microphone of franceinfo for "
an independent mission
" which would verify "
if the contracts do indeed protect our interests
".
Read also: Anti-Covid vaccines: why the EU hides entire parts of the contract with AstraZeneca
"
The transparency which has started, we will improve it,
" assured the Secretary of State above all.
For the time being, the contracts signed with the AstraZeneca group, the Curevac laboratory, and the Sanofi and GSK laboratories have been published.
But "
gradually, the others will be available
", announced Clément Beaune.
In summary, the Secretary of State "
wants all contracts to be accessible and that we look to see if there is more information that can be made available
" to MEPs.
Because at their publication, certain mentions were crossed out, in particular those informing the price of and the quantity, to protect "
the industrial secrecy
", according to him.
"
Things are very tightly controlled, there is a" task force "for vaccines in France which is in contact with the European Commission and in this context, the people who have to know it obviously see it
", has t -He specifies.
To go further in terms of transparency, in addition to his call to publish all contracts and increase the amount of information made available to MEPs, Clément Beaune advocates the establishment of an “
independent mission (... ) who can check with the health authorities, financially, scientifically, whether the contracts are protecting our interests.
"A mission which could be carried out"
for example by the Court of Auditors or the European Court of Auditors
".
This mission "
seems to me to be a good guarantee, it is the most pragmatic
", hammered the Secretary of State.
"
The months of February and March will be the most difficult
"
On the subject of vaccine deliveries to France, Clément Beaune wanted to be reassuring, pointing out that the delays observed in January would be reduced.
Regarding the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine, “
there was a four week delay, we reduced to one week, and this week the delivery will increase.
We go from 500,000 doses per week to 700,000,
”he said.
And for Moderna, "
there was a problem in February, it will be fully caught up in March
."
But despite this expected acceleration in the arrival of vaccines, "
the months of February and March will be the most difficult
" insisted the Secretary of State, and that "
because we still have significant restrictive measures, we have the question of variants that is causing concern, and because industrially the production and delivery of vaccines are gaining momentum
. ”
Read also: Fraud, conspiracy, false experts: scientific integrity undermined by the Covid crisis
Finally on the comparison established with the United Kingdom which has reached 15 million people vaccinated, Clément Beaune acknowledged that the British "
go faster, it's true (...) because they have relied heavily on the first injection.
".
"
If you look at the number of people in the UK and the EU who received two doses, you have fewer people who received both doses in the UK rather than elsewhere,
" and that is because "
they have considerably spaced the time between the two injections
”.
Something that France has not chosen to do because "
it is not the recommendation of our High Authority of Health
", specified the Secretary of State.
"
The British have taken more risks which effectively allows them to go faster (...) because their health situation is more degraded
", he concluded.
