Boris Johnson visiting earlier this year Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted: It is truly fantastic news - and a triumph for British science - that the @UniofOxford/@AstraZeneca vaccine has been approved for use. We will now move to vaccinate as many people as quickly as possible. A dedicated team of scientists at the university has been working on the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine trial. Among those who have helped with the vaccine project are the Viney family from Bicester. Katie and Tony Viney and their daughter Rhiannon were among more than 1,000 participants hoping they could help to tackle the pandemic.