JABS DOING THE JOB
PM CONFIDENT VACCINES WORK ON INDIAN VARIANT... BUT CALLS FOR CAUTION AS LOCKDOWN EASES TODAY
BORIS JOHNSON has urged people to show a ‘heavy dose of caution’ and keep getting their Covid jabs as a spreading Indian variant threatened to overshadow today’s lifting of lockdown restrictions.
The prime minister said the vaccines are proving effective against the strain as indoor socialising is permitted again, with pubs and restaurants welcoming customers back inside.
Scientists have warned of a ‘perilous moment’ caused by the Indian variant, which could be up to 50 per cent more transmissible than the Kent strain.
With people now allowed to hug each other, Mr Johnson insisted ‘everyone must play their part’ in keeping safe.
‘Together we have reached another milestone in our road map out of lockdown, but we must take this next step with a heavy dose of caution,’ he said. ‘We are keeping the spread of the variant first identified in India under close observation and taking swift action where infection rates are rising.’
He also hailed an acceleration of second vaccine doses as first jab appointments began to be offered to all over35s. ‘But now everyone must play their part – by getting tested twice a week, coming forward for your vaccine when called and remembering hands, face, space and fresh air,’ he said.
Health secretary Matt Hancock blamed people rejecting jabs for the surge in infections in worst-hit Bolton – but there were signs of much greater uptake following a doubling in cases of the B.1.617.2 Indian strain. He also did not rule out the possibility of imposing local lockdowns in stricken areas such as Bolton and Blackburn with more than 1,300 cases now identified.
But he said data from Oxford university indicated existing vaccines worked well against the strain. ‘That means that we can stay on course with our strategy of using the vaccine to deal with the pandemic and opening up carefully and cautiously, but we need to be very vigilant to the spread of the disease. We have a high degree of confidence that the vaccine will overcome.’
Mr Hancock also faced pressure over delays adding India to the ‘red list’ of countries under tougher travel restrictions after shadow communities secretary Steve Reed accused the government of failing to ‘prioritise the protection of the borders’.
Speaking on Sky News’s Sophy Ridge On Sunday, Mr Hancock said it was ‘only after we put India on the red list this variant went under investigation’.
Meanwhile, the UK recorded another four deaths in the latest 24-hour period, taking the overall toll to 127,679, while there were 1,926 confirmed new cases. More than 20million adults have now had both doses of a vaccine.