The argument from EU side is that EU money was also spend across those four sites needed to produce. There was expectation of shared cost and shared resources. Az committed they had no competing contracts, and if any would happen they would be brought up for resolution. So it seems the exclusivity has been claimed twice, both in cost as in rewards. Furthermore on the 8th of December UK taskforce said the first shots were from the continent, so the resources were shared after all, but apparently only one way?

About the vaccin buy-in, I never heard that story, but I might be one-sided here. I listened from the Brexit side of the media and the final argument was officially 'they did not receive the email (three times)' The unofficial assumption was that the UK wanted to prove something on their own. This time it worked out, both from securing the vaccins and delivering them. (Good on them, less people dying is a good thing in my book) But the different risk appetite I imagine hard to replicate to the continent, see the German advise for az vaccins above 65.

You're right the expected pre production did not happen, and we can talk all year about what happened. And the UK, approving it sooner, but also in a worse situation, could dip in first. The way forward is to find a fair balance in sharing these resources again, until the issues are solved. Maybe by vaccination degree of the vulnerable, maybe by population size, maybe recognising the UK ordered about 2 dosis per capita, and the EU only 1.

I heard AZ offered 39 million in q1 and the commission not yet being satisfied. But if we're talking numbers, we can get some way out. I just hope the export ban threat or the article 16 hasn't damaged too much.