Just 4 deaths – and 10m get second jab
THE UK recorded just four coronavirus deaths yesterday as it reached another ‘remarkable milestone’ of fully vaccinating 10million people.
Government figures show 10,152,039 people have now received their second dose of a Covid vaccine, with more than 43million jabs given in total.
There were 2,963 new cases recorded alongside four fatalities – the lowest number of daily deaths since September 7 and fewer than the average number of deaths from road accidents each day, which stands at five. Almost a fifth of all adults have now had both doses, while officials confirmed they are ‘ramping up plans for a booster’ later this year.
Yesterday Boris Johnson hailed the ‘fantastic’ achievement.
The Prime Minister said: ‘This is another remarkable milestone in our vaccination programme, which has already saved thousands of lives.
‘I want to thank the brilliant staff and volunteers involved in the rollout, and urge all those who are called for their vaccine to keep coming forward.’
Some 94 per cent of over-50s have now received at least one dose of a vaccine, with 98 per cent of people aged between 70 and 84 now estimated to have Covid antibodies.
Bookings for over-40s proved so popular last week that it ‘briefly overloaded the website’, the Health Secretary admitted.
Matt Hancock said new variants posed the ‘ biggest risk to our progress’, but added that he was confident the UK can ‘stay ahead of the virus’.
He told MPs in the Commons that work on a booster shot was continuing at pace.
‘We’ve already procured enough vaccine doses to begin the booster shots later this year,’ the Health Secretary said. ‘We will be working with our current vaccine suppliers and new suppliers, like the CureVac partnership, to work out which vaccines will be effective as a booster shot and to design new vaccines specifically targeted at the variants of concern, like the variant first found in South Africa.
‘Our goal is to ensure the vaccine protects against this dreadful disease, whatever it throws at us, to keep us safe and to protect our much-cherished return to normal way of life.’
Mr Hancock said there were now 103 confirmed cases of the socalled India variant in the UK, which had prompted the decision to add the country to the Government’s ‘red list’ for travel.
There have also been 557 cases of the South Africa variant, with a cluster of cases in south London – predominantly in the boroughs of Wandsworth, Lambeth and Southwark, as well as single cases over the last week in Barnet, Birmingham and Sandwell.
Mr Hancock added: ‘Around two thirds of these cases are related to international travel and have been picked up by the day two and day eight testing for international arrivals. However, we have seen a small amount of community transmission too,’ he added.
Although official figures are often artificially low due to a weekend lag, yesterday’s reported cases and deaths are considerably lower than last Monday, when 13 deaths and 3,568 cases were recorded.
Sir Simon Stevens, head of NHS England, said the vaccine programme ‘has gone from strength to strength’, adding: ‘It is down to careful planning coupled with the sheer hard work and determination of doctors, nurses and countless other staff ably assisted by volunteers and many others.’