| The Compton firm hired by the NHS to develop a vaccine against bird flu appears to have been pipped to the post by pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline. Baxter Healthcare secured the contract in February, and submitted its vaccine for testing by US government scientists, before stockpiling could begin.
But GlaxoSmithKline claims its vaccine has passed the tests and is ready to go next year. With an estimated 200m birds infected by the deadly H5N1 strain of avian flu worldwide, the UK government is keen to stockpile vaccines and antiviral drugs in case of a serious outbreak. | 
