Covid vaccine rollout is still on target, ministers pledge

All adults will be vaccinated by the target date of July 31 as the rollout continues ‘full steam ahead’, ministers pledged yesterday.

And officials are confident there are sufficient supplies of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for the ten million under-30s who have now been advised not to have the Oxford/AstraZeneca one.

However, some experts suggested that the ‘change of course’ of the programme could still slow down the rollout and may lead to some people having to travel further to get their vaccine.

It is also too early to say whether vaccine hesitancy might increase as a result of the decision to offer the under-30s an alternative jab over fears of very rare blood clots.

And it is not clear whether some of those who have had their first dose of the AstraZeneca jab will be deterred from having their second dose – though officials have made clear that they should still have it.

On a visit to Cornwall yesterday, Boris Johnson vowed there would be no delay to the lockdown-easing plans and that he believed the vaccine rollout would continue on schedule.

Officials are confident there are sufficient supplies of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for the ten million under-30s who have now been advised not to have the Oxford/AstraZeneca one. Pictured: Practice Nurse Gemma Reid gives pensioners a Covid-19 vaccine at Lichfield Cathedral, Staffs

So far 31.7million people in the UK – more than six in ten adults – have received at least one dose of the vaccine. This means around 21million over-18s are still waiting for their first dose

He said: ‘I don’t see any reason at this stage at all to think we need to deviate from the road map and we’re also very secure about our supply.’

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: ‘We’re on track to offer a first jab to all adults by the end of July. When you get the call, get the jab.’

Vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi said the Government was ‘confident in meeting our programme targets’.

So far 31.7million people in the UK – more than six in ten adults – have received at least one dose of the vaccine. This means around 21million over-18s are still waiting for their first dose.

With 16 weeks to go until July 31, the UK must deliver first doses at a rate of 185,000 a day – or 1.3million a week – over the next four months.

Current Cabinet Office projections suggest ministers are expecting supplies of 2.7million vaccines a week until the end of July.

However, a significant proportion of these will be used for second doses, which must be given to people within 12 weeks of their first.

First-dose vaccinations have been faltering in recent days and yesterday’s data showed just 85,000 first doses were delivered, compared to 187,000 second doses. However, the NHS is confident it will have enough doses of the Pfizer and Moderna jabs to give first doses to 18 to 29-year-olds.

The UK’s vaccination programme has been bolstered by hundreds of thousands of Moderna jabs, which began being rolled out yesterday.

Officials also hope that two more jabs – Janssen and Novavax – could be approved within weeks. Professor Adam Finn, a member of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, suggested the Moderna vaccine could be reserved for younger people.

Deputy chief medical officer, Professor Jonathan Van-Tam, said of the new advice for under-30s: ‘Because of our supply situation in relation to alternative vaccines, the effect on the timing of our overall programme should be zero or negligible.’

He added: ‘It is full speed ahead with the UK vaccination programme so we can get life back to normal.’

However, Caroline Casey, from data data analytics company Airfinity company Airfinity, said: ‘In terms of hitting the deadline in July, of the vaccines we would expect to be delivered in July, AstraZeneca would make up about 36 per cent of those.

‘So should AstraZeneca have suspended use in certain age groups that could push the deadline… back to potentially the middle of August according to some of our calculations.’

A Government spokesman said: ‘More than 37 million jabs overall have already been administered, and we are on track to offer jabs to all over-50s by April 15 and all adults by the end of July.’