More than 12 million have had first dose of Covid vaccine
More than 12 million people have had the first dose of a vaccine against Covid-19, the Department of Health and Social Care announced today.
As of today, some 12,014,288 people have had a first dose of a vaccine against coronavirus.
More than half a million individuals have had a second dose of a coronavirus vaccine, giving them greater defence against the virus.
Meanwhile the latest Covid-19 data showed a further 15,845 people had tested positive for the virus, and another 373 have died within 28 days of a positive test.
This morning vaccine minister Nadhim Zahawi said a Covid-19 booster in the autumn and then annual vaccinations were very probable.
“We see very much probably an annual or a booster in the autumn and then an annual (vaccination), in the way we do with flu vaccinations where you look at what variant of virus is spreading around the world,” Zahawi told the Andrew Marr Show.
Vaccine targets
The government is on target to deliver vaccines to the 13.9 million people most vulnerable to Covid-19 by mid-February.
A senior government adviser said all adults over the age of 50 will receive a vaccine by May.
The timeline means more than 32m people will have been offered a first dose of the vaccine by the summer — almost half the UK population.
The news comes as an AstraZeneca study found its vaccine, which it developed in partnership with the University of Oxford, had significantly reduced efficacy against the South African variant.