A high-profile doctor in England has said patients turned down the chance to have the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine, saying they would “wait for the English one”.
Paul Williams, a former Labour MP, said it shows nationalism has consequences, given they were delaying having a jab at the height of the pandemic.
The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was made available to patients at the start of December, while the Oxford/AstraZeneca version was authorised on December 30th.
Development of the Pfizer vaccine began in Germany, while development of the “English” AstraZeneca vaccine began at Oxford University.
Some local patients have turned down an offer this weekend of getting a Covid vaccine when they found out it was the Pfizer one. “I’ll wait for the English one”.
People at risk of death in the depths of a pandemic.
A lesson that Nationalism has consequences.Advertisement— Dr Paul Williams (@PaulWilliamsLAB) January 7, 2021
Dr Williams was a GP before turning to politics and continued to see patients while he was an MP to maintain a link with them.
Since he was voted out in 2019, he has worked on the NHS’s fight against Covid-19.
Writing on Twitter, he said: “Some local patients have turned down an offer this weekend of getting a Covid vaccine when they found out it was the Pfizer one. ‘I’ll wait for the English one’.
“People at risk of death in the depths of a pandemic. A lesson that Nationalism has consequences.”
Dr Williams was made an OBE in the New Year Honours list for his services to Parliament and healthcare.
