§ Baroness Noakesasked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the statement by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath that the procurement of smallpox vaccines fell outside the usual rules governing competitive tendering because the procurement concerns national security (HL Deb, 18 April, col 1075), whether they regard the announcement by PowderJect Pharmaceuticals that it had been awarded a contract for the supply of smallpox vaccines as a breach of national security. [HL3978]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath)The announcement by PowderJect to the Stock Exchange concerned the award of a £32 million contract and its collaboration with Bavarian Nordic and was not considered to be a breach of national security.
§ Baroness Noakesasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they considered the use of the accelerated tendering procedures permitted by European Union procurement rules for the purchase of smallpox vaccines; and, if so, why those procedures were not adopted. [HL3979]
§ Lord Hunt of Kings HeathAs smallpox has been eradicated since the 1970s, its re-introduction is likely to occur only as a result of terrorist activity. This therefore raises issues of national security.
In seeking to establish which vaccine-manufacturing companies might be able to provide new vaccine to meet our requirements we took the view that purchase of the new vaccine should not be subject to the usual open competitive tendering process, including the accelerated process under the European 38WA Union procurement rules. There are specific exemptions allowed for this in procurement legislation on the grounds of protection of the basic and essential interests of national security.