The UK has rejected the current draft of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) pandemic treaty, deeming it “not acceptable.” 

Health Minister Andrew Stephenson dealt the latest blow to the WHO last week, adding that “unless the current text is changed and refined we will not be signing up.” 

He further said that Britain would only support the treaty if it is “firmly in the United Kingdom’s national interest” and respects national sovereignty. 

“Under no circumstances will we allow the WHO to have the power to mandate lockdowns, this would be unthinkable and has never been proposed. Protecting our sovereignty is a British red line,” he said.

The current draft of the proposed WHO pandemic treaty includes a provision that countries must reserve 20% of pandemic-related products like vaccines, treatments, and tests for the WHO.

Stephenson balked at the notion, stating, “Of course we are a generous country. Companies may make their own choices to donate vaccines, but this would be and should be entirely their decision.”

Deadline approaching

The WHO’s goal to have a legally binding treaty on pandemic preparedness and prevention has been negotiated by the 194 member states of the WHO for the past two years. But with the WHO’s deadline just two weeks away, this statement from the UK is a massive blow. 

The main points of contention include access to pathogens detected within countries, and the equitable distribution of pandemic-fighting products such as vaccines, treatments, and tests. 

Making matters worse for the WHO, a health spokesperson for the UK’s Labour opposition, predicted to win the upcoming general election, echoed Stephenson’s sentiment, stating their party “would not sign anything which would leave our population unprotected in the face of a novel disease.” 

In December, Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico vehemently denounced the unelected WHO, calling it a Big Pharma creation that seeks to control governments.