Covid inquiry finds UK led world on vaccines - but minority were harmed

Covid inquiry finds UK led world on vaccines - but minority were harmedCovid-19 Inquiry finds over 450,000 lives were saved by Britain’s rapid vaccine rollout while NHS treatment breakthrough saved a million lives globallyCommentsNewsMartin Bagot Health and Science Editor12:00, 16 Apr 2026Updated 12:10, 16 Apr 2026View 4 ImagesRapid jabs rollout saved around half a million lives in Britain(Image: Getty Images)Britain’s pandemic vaccine rollout was an “extraordinary feat” but people harmed by jabs were let down, the Covid-19 Inquiry has found.‌The biggest public inquiry in British history said 450,000 lives were saved in England alone after scientists and the NHS were able to develop and roll out a vaccine in record time. However a minority who were left disabled after experiencing rare side effects told the probe they felt “silenced, ignored or treated as vaccine deniers” and the report said government payouts to them should be increased.‌The latest module of the Covid-19 inquiry looking at vaccines and treatments against the virus paints a picture of how scientists and medics were the real heroes of the pandemic.‌View 4 ImagesThe inquiry heard emotional testimony that that sick patients appeared to be 'raining from the sky'(Image: Adam Gerrard / Sunday Mirror)READ MORE: Iran war live: Middle East breakthrough as Iran gives major Hormuz hint amid 'historic talks'READ MORE: Moment Farage Reform heavies manhandle frail OAP in parking rowThe NHS delivered the first ever approved Covid-19 vaccine while an NHS study identified the first drug to work against the virus, which then immediately became the standard treatment for people on ventilators and saved a million lives globally.Inquiry chair Baroness Heather Hallett said: “When the Covid-19 pandemic hit the UK, the race was on to develop an effective vaccine and establish the most effective therapeutics programme to fight this new and deadly virus.‌“The vaccination programme was an extraordinary fea...