The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday it had received data from Pfizer and BioNTech on their COVID-19 vaccine and was reviewing it for possible listing for emergency use, a benchmark for countries to authorize national use.

"The WHO is also in discussions with MHRA on the possibility of accessing some of the information from their assessment, which could expedite WHO's emergency listing," it told Reuters, referring to Britain's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

Britain approved Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday, jumping ahead of the United States and Europe to become the West's first country to formally endorse a shot it said should reach the most vulnerable people early next week.