A NEW pill could soon make flu jabs obsolete.

Thousands of people shy away from flu immunisation because they are scared of needles.

But Strathclyde University immunologist Professor Bill Stimson claims a micro- capsule containing the vaccine could be ready in months.

He says it is easy to swallow and as effective as injecting the vaccine into the bloodstream.

Professor Stimson flew to the US yesterday to meet potential commercial partners.

If successful, the pill will help tackle the bed-blocking crisis that has crippled the NHS during winter flu epidemics.

It is also expected to become a "platform technology" for other vaccines - the cost of injections is higher than vaccines which can be taken orally.

Professor Stimson said: "Any vaccine that can be taken orally is better than an injection because so many people dislike them.

"The number of elderly people who come forward for the flu injection has increased but far too many opt out.

"Go into hospital in winter and beds are still blocked by elderly people who have caught the flu.

"That is what I would like to tackle in the first instance.

"It's much swifter and much easier to give someone a small tablet to pop into their mouth and wash it down with water."

Oral vaccines have been problematic because they contain proteins which are broken down and destroyed in the stomach.

But Professor Stimson and his colleagues devised a new method.

The new carrier, a tiny capsule, is made of small fat-like particles which can't be dissolved in the stomach. The vaccine passes through unscathed into the small intestine.

The researcher explained: "The micro-capsule is designed to dissolve in the small intestine.

"The vaccine itelf then binds on to the small intestine and is absorbed into the bloodstream.

"The results of the vaccination using this method are equal to the injections currently used.

"We have about six months work left before we will be able to prove that this concept works.

"We must ensure that the finished product is exactly right."

Dr Jim McMenamin, of the Scottish Centre for Infection and Environmental Health, said: "Alternative ways of administering the vaccine are regarded as a way of improving uptake.

"There is a large group who don't want to have needles put in their arms and that is a problem.

"An oral vaccine that is proven to work is very attractive."

Flu reached epidemic levels in Scotland in winter 1999 with 839 cases per 100,000 people.