UK minister: Regulator concern sank deal for Valneva shot

By DANICA KIRKA
Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — UK. Health Secretary Sajid Javid says that the government canceled an agreement with French vaccine maker Valneva partly because it was clear the company’s COVID-19 shot wouldn’t be approved by British regulators. Javid’s comments came a day after Valneva said the government had terminated an agreement to buy at least 100 million doses of the vaccine. The company “strenuously” denied allegations that it had breached its contract obligations. Javid responded to questions from a lawmaker by saying he couldn’t go into detail on the government’s decision because of commercial issues.