THE UK will not be participating in the European Union’s Covid-19 vaccine scheme due to concerns over “costly delays”, The Daily Telegraph has reported.

The UK Government had been given the opportunity to join the programme, which will see the EU spend about two billion euros on the advance purchase of vaccines currently undergoing testing on behalf of all member states.

Business Secretary Alok Sharma is believed to have told EU leaders that the UK will be opting out of the programme, the newspaper reported. The European Commission is expected to be notified officially later today.

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The decision not to join will provoke anger from opposition MPs, who believe ministers are reluctant to work with the EU after Brexit.

The move comes after the UK’s failure to join an EU-wide ventilator procurement scheme sparked a row earlier this year, with one civil servant claiming that decision was “political” before ministers insisted there had been communication issues surrounding the UK’s role in the project.

UK Government sources told the Daily Telegraph that officials are concerned signing up to the scheme could delay the rollout of any future coronavirus vaccine while talks on distribution are held.

They were also concerned that countries which opt-in would have to accept a cap on the number of doses given to each member state.

Officials claimed the benefits of the EU scheme would be “limited”, despite the bloc saying their collective purchasing power will be helpful.