Omicron is what you get in a world of ‘have jabs and have nots’

Patents should be waived, lives should be put before profits, and universal access to vaccines should be at the top of the agenda at the upcoming G7 meeting, writes Jennifer Larbie

‘While the UK government has admirably ensured early and consistent vaccine stocks for the UK, it has not done nearly enough to help ensure vaccines reach low-income countries’ (iStock)

With so many of us having one eye on Christmas, there is a real fear that the omicron variant could restrict our time with friends and family.

But this new variant is also the latest reminder that the failure to equitably roll out vaccines globally is costing lives both at home and abroad.

This failure has increased the risk of new variants and created a world of “have jabs and have nots”. When the foreign secretary said this week the free world took its eye off the ball, she really did hit the nail on the head.