LONDON (Reuters) – Britain on Monday became the first country to vaccinate its population with the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 shot, but Prime Minister Boris Johnson would tighten restrictions in England in an effort to spread the word. delayed.
Johnson will deliver a television address at 20:00 (2000 GMT) and Parliament will be recalled on Wednesday.
“The proliferation of the new variant of COVID-19 has led to rapidly increasing case numbers across the country,” a spokesman for the prime minister’s office said.
‘The Prime Minister is clear that further steps must now be taken to arrest this rise and protect the NHS (National Health Service) and save lives. He will set out tonight. ‘
Against the ominous backdrop of the daily record cases, Britain declared a scientific ‘triumph’ as Brian Pinker (82), the dialysis, was the first person to receive the Oxford / AstraZeneca shot outside a trial.
“I’m so glad I got the COVID vaccine today and am very proud that it’s one invented in Oxford,” said Pinker, a retired maintenance manager, just a few hundred yards from where the vaccine was developed. is, said.
Britain is grappling with the world’s sixth highest death toll and one of the worst economic hits of the COVID-19 crisis. More than 75,000 people in the UK died within 28 days after a positive test for COVID-19.
It was the first country to develop the vaccine developed by Pfizer and German BioNTech almost a month ago, giving preference to receiving a first dose of vaccines to as many people as giving second doses.
Some experts say they are concerned about such an approach.
Two new variants of the coronavirus complicate the COVID-19 response, and Britain has seen a revival in cases to new daily highs.
British scientists have expressed concern that COVID-19 vaccines being rolled out may not be able to protect against a new variant of the coronavirus that originated in South Africa and has spread internationally.
Johnson warned of ‘difficult, difficult weeks’ ahead.
“If you look at the numbers, there is no doubt that we will have to take stricter measures,” Johnson said on a visit to health workers receiving the Oxford vaccine.
RESTRICTIONS ARE ENCOURAGED
ITV News has said that the strictest Level 4 restrictions, which currently cover much of England, will be introduced across the country and that schools will be closed.
Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon has moved ahead of Johnson, imposing the strictest closure since last spring.
“It is no exaggeration to say that I am more concerned about the situation we are experiencing now than I have ever been since March,” she said.
Britain has administered more than a million COVID-19 vaccines – more than the rest of Europe combined, said Health Secretary Matt Hancock, declaring it a triumph of British science.
Johnson’s government has obtained 100 million doses of Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine that can be stored at refrigerator temperatures between two and eight degrees, making it easier to disperse than the Pfizer shot.
Six hospitals in England give the first of about 530,000 doses Britain has prepared. The program will be expanded to hundreds of other UK websites in the coming days, and the government hopes to deliver tens of millions of doses within months.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it administered 4.2 million first-dose COVID-19 vaccines on Saturday morning and distributed 13.07 million doses.
More than a tenth of Israel’s population has had a vaccine and it is now administered more than 150,000 doses a day.
Germany and Denmark are exploring the possibility of delaying the administration of a second dose of Pfizer vaccine to extend scarce supplies, following a similar move by Britain.
Britain has become the first Western country to approve and roll out a COVID-19 vaccine, although it stands behind Russia and China, which have been vaccinating their citizens for months.
Additional reporting by Elizabeth Piper, writing by William James, Guy Faulconbridge and Alistair Smout; Edited by Kate Holton, Nick Macfie and Mike Collett-White