The government has asked the regulator to assess the Oxford/AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine, bringing the UK a step closer to a possible rollout. The referral to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) marked “a significant first step” in getting the vaccine “approved for deployment”, the government said. It follows news that the jab was “highly effective” in advanced trials. The UK government has pre-ordered 100m doses of the Oxford vaccine. The government’s latest request to the MHRA comes a week after the regulator was asked to assess the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. (BBC)…[+]