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* Johnson tries to row back from gaffe on greed
* Praises capitalism in vaccine lead
* UK state money developed the Oxford vaccine
* Communist China moved fast to develop a vaccine
(Adds context on Oxford vaccine)
By Costas Pitas
LONDON, March 24 (Reuters) - Capitalism and greed gave
Britain its success in vaccinating its population, Prime
Minister Boris Johnson told lawmakers in a closed meeting, a
remark that could rile up Brussels at a time when Britain faces
an EU threat to block vaccine imports.
"The reason we have the vaccine success is because of
capitalism, because of greed my friends," The Sun newspaper
quoted Johnson as telling Conservative lawmakers on a Zoom
meeting on Tuesday evening.
Johnson then tried to row back and said: "Actually I regret
saying it" and asked lawmakers repeatedly to "forget I said
that".
Britain has so far mounted the fastest COVID-19 vaccine
programme of any big country. But it now finds its programme
threatened by the EU, which has been far slower in rolling out
vaccines and faces a third wave of infections.
The European Commission is expected on Wednesday to extend
powers to block exports, a move that could hit supply of doses
bound for Britain. Johnson's remarks come after a week in which
British ministers have tried to calm the row.
Downing Street declined to comment on Johnson's remarks when
contacted by Reuters, but unidentified sources gave the BBC a
bizarre array of explanations.
The greed comment, according to the BBC's political editor
Laura Kuenssberg, was apparently a joke about one of his cabinet
colleagues, Chief Whip Mark Spencer, who was gobbling a cheese
and pickle sandwich while the prime minister spoke.
Johnson, Home Secretary Priti Patel said, was talking about
the success of pharmaceutical companies in developing a vaccine
shot in record time.
"Clearly the prime minister was actually referring to the
work that has taken place with pharmaceutical companies and how
we have led the way really in this vaccine development," said
Patel, who was not in the meeting.
Britain was one of several countries that developed a
COVID-19 vaccine shot in record time: the shot developed by
Oxford University and AstraZeneca was approved for use
on Dec. 30 by the British medicines regulator.
The British government helped fund the research, and
AstraZeneca has promised to market it on a not-for-profit basis.
Other vaccines around the world have been developed with
state funding, from Communist China and former communist Russia
to the capitalist United States.
(Reporting by Costas Pitas and Guy Faulconbridge; Editing by
Steve Orlofsky, Rosalba O'Brien, Kate Holton and Peter Graff)
