Health Secretary Matt Hancock has claimed Brexit allowed the UK to approve a Covid vaccine more quickly than other European Union (EU) countries.

The government and its supporters are beginning to claim 'benefits' of being outside the European Union some of which were always available to EU member states or, in other cases, are not benefits at all.

2024: Boris Johnson says the UK had the fastest vaccine rollout because we left the EU / 2020: Dr June Raine (then CEO of the MHRA speaking at a Downing Street briefing) says the UK approved the vaccine rollout while under EU rules