Poll shows plunge in Europeans' trust in AstraZeneca jab

LONDON: Trust in AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine in many European countries has plunged following controversy around the jab in recent weeks, according to a new survey unveiled Monday by British pollsters YouGov.

A majority of people in the biggest European Union member states, including Germany, France, Spain and Italy, now see the inoculation as unsafe, the recent poll found.

However, views of the Anglo-Swedish pharma giant's jab remain overwhelming positive in Britain, where two-thirds of respondents said it is safe, compared to just nine percent believing it is not.

The findings come at a tumultuous time for the AstraZeneca vaccine and the EU's troubled inoculation campaign, as a third virus wave on the continent prompts renewed social restrictions.

Meanwhile, Britain and the bloc are embroiled in an increasingly acrimonious war of words over supplies, with Brussels warning it may halt AstraZeneca vaccine exports.

The drop in Europeans' faith in the jab, developed in partnership with Oxford University in the UK, follows weeks of turmoil on the continent over safety fears.

Earlier this month several EU countries suspended its use, pending a review by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) after dozens of isolated cases of blood clots and brain haemorrhages.

The EMA last week declared the AstraZeneca jab "safe and effective", with the WHO and Britain's drugs watchdog issuing similar endorsements.

That led European countries to resume administering the vaccine, but not before severely damaging confidence in it.