Vaccine scepticism: Anti-vaccine sentiment may be softening as vaccine roll-outs gather pace

3/30/21 8:00PM

As vaccination programmes around the world gather steam, they appear to be reducing not just COVID cases, but vaccine scepticism itself.

In October of last year an IPSOS poll in 14 countries found a significant amount of scepticism about taking vaccines. A more recent poll, from the end of February, has found that in 10 of those 14 countries, the proportion of people that agree they would get a COVID-19 vaccine were it available has gone up. In some cases, such as Italy and Spain, quite substantially so.

In the UK, where more than half of the adult population has now had a vaccine dose, 87% of those polled would now agree to a vaccine, up from 79% in October, before the vaccine drive began. In the US, the change in attitudes has been modest, up just 1 point.‍

Je suis (still) sceptique

‍In France just 54% of those polled "agreed" that they would get a COVID vaccine, were it available back in October. The latest poll has seen that number increase to 59%, but it still leaves France as the most vaccine-sceptic of the 14 polled.

Jake Lahut

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The UAE’s OPEC exit will hit the group in the barrels

After just shy of 60 years in OPEC, its membership even predating its status as a nation-state, the United Arab Emirates yesterday announced its shocking departure from the oil production group, effective May 1, as the knock-on effects of the Iran war continue to play out across the Middle East and the energy landscape.

For context, the UAE produces the third-highest amount of oil in the group, per April data and OPEC’s latest set of annual statistics.

According to the cartel’s 2025 Annual Statistical Bulletin, the OPEC group was collectively exporting some 19 million barrels of crude oil a day last year, with the United Arab Emirates accounting for some 14% of that daily output.

UAExit means UAExit

The nation, whose energy minister told Reuters yesterday that the decision was taken “after a careful look at current and future policies related to level of production” and wasn’t made following discussions with any other country, made up a healthy share of the group’s total confirmed crude oil reserves, as well.

Of the 12 nations in the core group, which was founded by just five oil superpowers back in September 1960, only two (Iraq and Saudi Arabia) exported more barrels of crude oil daily, pumping out 3.36 million and 6.05 million barrels, respectively, each day to nations around the world.

For its part, the UAE said it will “continue its responsible role by gradually and thoughtfully increasing production, in line with demand and market conditions,” per the official state news agency. Clearly, the nation now wants a little more control of just how much oil it can pump around the world, with the UAE having to eat a large proportion of lost revenues due to its healthy abundance and OPEC restrictions.