The UK did not take part in the EU’s scheme to acquire extra ventilators during the coronavirus pandemic because of an “issue in terms of communication,” according to UK Business Minister Alok Sharma.

Responding to British media reports, Sharma told the BBC’s Radio 4 on Friday:

The tendering process on those schemes had already started… If there are future schemes we will absolutely look to see if we will be joining them.”

Britain's Business Minister Alok Sharma arrives at 10 Downing Street in London on March 17, ahead of a Cabinet meeting. Tolga Akmen/AFP/Getty Images

He said the UK has its own “ventilator challenge,” which has seen around 3,000 companies respond with offers to help.

On Wednesday, James Dyson, the founder of British technology company Dyson, confirmed to employees in a letter shared with CNN that it had received an order from the UK government for 10,000 new ventilators to support efforts by the NHS to treat the growing number of patients who have contracted coronavirus.

Dyson's new ventilator, called the "CoVent," attached to a hospital bed, in a handout photo from Dyson. Dyson

Asked about Dyson-produced ventilators being in use by next month, Sharma said Dyson or any other company will need to meet the regulatory requirements before newly acquired ventilators are put into use in the National Health Service (NHS).

Pressed on the timescale, Sharma said: “What we want to see is prototypes coming forward in a matter of weeks before we move into large scale production.”

He said although the government is trying to move at pace, “the critical point is to make sure that any machines that come forward actually meet the requirements and are safe”.