...but at least he’s in the clear with jab
1 in 2 adults have had first dose as record 647,378 get jab in one day – including a very proud PM
BRITAIN’S vaccination drive hit new records yesterday as the Prime Minister received his injection, with half of all adults now given a first jab.
Boris Johnson and the vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi were among those having their first doses yesterday as the country shrugged off a week of EU scare stories about the AstraZeneca jab.
Mr Johnson, who had the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, thanked NHS staff, scientists and volunteers ‘who helped make this happen’, saying: ‘Getting the jab is the best thing we can do to get back to the lives we miss so much.’ He added wryly: ‘Let’s get the jab done.’
It came as the World Health Organisation’s safety panel said data did not point to any overall increase in blood clotting from the AstraZeneca jab, with the vaccine having a ‘positive benefit-risk profile’.
Official figures revealed a record day in the UK’s vaccination programme, with an astonishing 647,378 doses administered – equal to more than seven jabs per second.
A total of 22,337,590 people had been given a first jab as of March 18, according to NHS England.
This is the equivalent of 50.5 per cent of the population of adults in England, based on the latest estimates by the Office for National Statistics.
The boost to the UK’s jabs programme came as:
■ Mr Johnson ordered ministers to ramp up domestic jab production amid growing fears that future supplies could be hit by so-called vaccine wars.
■ Leading epidemiologist Professor Neil Ferguson played down hopes of summer holidays in Europe, warning Britain needed to be protected from a third wave of the virus.
■ Official figures showed the UK death rate was no longer the worst in Europe during the second wave, with Poland, Spain, Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic and Slovenia all performing worse.
■ Mr Johnson launched a diplomatic drive to head off the threat of an EU export ban which could derail the jabs programme.
■ A Government source warned cases were on the rise again in some parts of the country, adding; ‘It would be wrong to assume we’re out of the woods.’
■ French PM Jean Castex sought to boost confidence by releasing a photo of his own AstraZeneca inoculation.
■ Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden backed calls for vaccine passports, saying they could help open up theatres and sports stadiums.
■ Mr Johnson congratulated the Mail Force charity as it broke through the £25million donations barrier.
The PM’s vaccination was administered by senior nurse Lily Harrington at Westminster Bridge Vaccination Centre at St Thomas’ Hospital in central London, where the PM was treated during his near-fatal brush with Covid last year.
Speaking outside afterwards, he said he ‘literally did not feel a thing’, adding: ‘It was very good and quick. I cannot recommend it highly enough.’
In further upbeat news, official figures revealed the pandemic is continuing to come under control, despite the reopening of schools almost a fortnight ago.
The daily death toll now averages under 100 – a fall of 37 per cent in just a week. Some 101 were announced yesterday.
The number of people in hospital with Covid has also fallen sharply to just over 6,500.
But a shortfall of five million AstraZeneca jabs from India, which has allegedly been blocked by the Indian government, along with the need to retest a batch of 1.7million doses, means the jabs drive will slow down next month.
Mr Zahawi said he was ‘confident’ the UK would hit its target of offering the vaccine to all over50s by mid-April and all adults by the end of July.
‘Literally did not feel a thing’