WHO warns on tobacco industry role in vaccine

The World Health Organisation has warned about engaging with the tobacco industry over potential coronavirus vaccines.

The World Health Organisation has warned governments about engaging with the tobacco industry over the development of coronavirus vaccines.

British American Tobacco, whose cigarette brands include Lucky Strike and Dunhill, said this month that it had made a breakthrough in developing a potential plant-based vaccine candidate for COVID-19.

However, vaccines from Big Tobacco would pose a dilemma for public health officials and governments. Under the WHO’s framework convention on tobacco control, members are restricted in dealing with the industry.

The global health body said that “partnership with the tobacco industry undermines governments’ credibility in protecting population health as there is ‘a fundamental and irreconcilable conflict between the tobacco industry’s interests and public health policy interests’.”

It said that countries including Britain that had ratified the framework in 2004 “should take steps to prevent any interference by the tobacco industry”.

It also said that the tobacco industry was trying to be “part of the solution, proposing support and donations” to countries to improve its corporate image by showing “social responsibility to the population, media and decision makers”, with governments “struggling with a lack of resources and limited supplies of medical equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic”.

The London-listed BAT, which generated profits of £9bn ($17.7bn) last year, has joined the race to develop a vaccine that involves companies worldwide. Its vaccine is being developed with Kentucky Bio Processing, its US biotech subsidiary. It said this month it was in preclinical testing and wanted to form partnerships with government agencies on the non-profit project to help to bring its vaccine to human trials.

David O’Reilly, director of scientific research at BAT, has said that the company has contacted healthcare departments to offer access to its research and planned to contact the WHO.

Medicago, a biotechnology specialist based in Quebec and partly owned by Philip Morris International, the maker of Marlboro, is also striving to develop a vaccine for the virus.

The Times