Glaxo set to reap £1bn from swine flu

Pharmaceuticals giant GlaxoSmithKline is likely to make as much as £1bn out of its swine flu vaccine, according to analysts. The company is talking to a large number of countries worldwide and initially plans to produce 195m doses of the vaccine, with more likely to follow later. The British government alone has ordered 60m doses and Glaxo will sell the treatment for £6 a time when the first shipments land in the UK this September. It is thought to cost around £1 a shot to produce.

Responding to controversy over the possible levels of earnings, chief executive Andrew Witty underlined Glaxo’s £1.5bn spending on vaccine development and said "Swine flu is going to be positive for performance, but only because we have put ourselves in a position to do it. And we have done that by taking very significant risks over a long time, diverting a huge amount of resources to it and doing the research that nobody else has done, so I'm not going to apologise for the fact that the company is going to make a return."

Glaxo also announced that it would be raising its production of swine flu treatment Relenza to 190m doses per year, adding a further £600m to revenues. And it said it had gained approval for its new disposable antiviral face mask, effective against bird and swine flu in the past.

WHAT THEY ARE SAYING:James Moore in the Independent: "GSK has the talent and capability to knock this nasty little virus on the head more quickly and more efficiently than any government or NGO – that is why it was selected by the World Health Organisation to produce a vaccine. We should be thanking Mr Witty rather than trashing him. At the moment, we need him and his company."

Lib Dem health spokesman Norman Lamb, in the Daily Mirror: "This is a bonanza for the company. They have done the work so should legitimately benefit, but this is a staggeringly substantial return. I will write to the National Audit Office to determine whether we got the best deal for the taxpayer." ·