German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz has said he was angry that more Covid-19 vaccines were not ordered last year as European Union (EU) chief executive Ursula von der Leyen renewed her defence of the European Commission’s record on rolling them out, Reuters reports.

“I’m angry about some of the decisions that were taken last year,” Scholz told BBC radio’s Today programme. “I think there had been the opportunity to order more of the vaccines.”

Asked about von der Leyen’s responsibility for the slow rollout, Scholz, speaking in English, replied: “I think it is necessary that anyone learns the lesson, and this is also [true] for Europe. I think the EU is strong.”