Hancock plays down fears over shortage of flu jabs

PEOPLE do not need to get flu jabs until December, Matt Hancock has said, as health officials play down fears of shortages of vaccines.

The NHS roll-out of flu jabs is now under way, with priority given to pensioners and people with health conditions, with further roll-outs promised for other groups in coming months.

Yesterday health officials said they were confident there are sufficient vaccines to provide them for all those eligible – saying that in four of five winters, there is little flu before December.

The Health Secretary assured MPS that there were enough jabs for people in need of them. Earlier this week, GPS urged those eligible for vaccinations to

‘There are enough flu jabs for everybody who needs them in a priority group. We’ve got 30 million jabs’

“sit tight” as they warned of “significant problems” obtaining sufficient supplies.

It came after pharmacies including Boots and Lloyds suspended booking for flu jabs, with demand vastly outstripping supply. But yesterday Mr Hancock insisted that there are enough vaccines for those who are eligible.

Ministers have promised “the biggest flu vaccination programme in history” to ensure the NHS can cope with a “double whammy” of flu and Covid-19.

They pledged to expand the programme to half the population, including healthy over-50s offered a jab, as well as pensioners.

However, latest NHS England board papers only say that the scheme “may” be expanded to include 50 to 64-yearolds “if circumstances permit”. Health officials say over-65s are being prioritised, along with children and adults with underlying health problems.

Mr Hancock said: “There are enough flu jabs for everybody who needs them in a priority group. We’ve got 30 million jabs in total. That is more than we’ve ever had before. It is almost double what we have typically had in the past.”