A carer from Carmarthenshire became the first person in Britain to receive the Moderna vaccine this morning.
Elle Taylor, 24, was given a dose at the Glangwili General Hospital in Carmarthen as deployment of the jab began in the UK.
Taylor, from Ammanford, found out yesterday that she was to become the first Briton to receive the Moderna vaccine. “I’m very excited and very happy,” she said. “I’m an unpaid carer for my grandmother so it is very important to me that I get it, so I can care for her properly and safely. My grandmother has had her first dose and she is going for her second dose on Saturday.”
The UK’s vaccination programme is being bolstered by hundreds of thousands of Moderna jabs
Former Scottish first minister Alex Salmond has refused four times to say whether he believes Russia was behind the Salisbury poisonings.
Mr Salmond, who has formed a new pro-independence party ahead of next month's Scottish elections, hosts "The Alex Salmond Show" each week on RT - a Russian state-controlled TV network.
In 2019, RT - formerly known as Russia Today - was fined by Ofcom for a "serious breach" of impartiality rules.
The media watchdog said RT's "failures" had been "serious and repeated".
Image:The UK and a host of other countries have blamed Russia for the 2018 nerve agent attack
Following an investigation, Ofcom found that RT had broken TV impartiality rules in seven programmes discussing the Salisbury poisonings.
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The UK government and a host of other countries have blamed Russia for the 2018 nerve agent attack, with Russian President Vladimir Putin directly held liable.
However, asked if he shared the view that Russia was behind the incident during a radio interview on Wednesday, Mr Salmond repeatedly refused to say he agreed.
More from Alex Salmond
"I think the evidence is as it came forward," he told BBC Good Morning Scotland.
Mr Salmond, who now leads the Alba Party, added: "What has this got to do with this election?"
When it was put to him that he works for RT, Mr Salmond told presenter Gary Robertson: "I produce, along with Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh, a programme for Slainte Media which is then broadcast on the RT platform, as they're perfectly entitled to do.
"I can tell you from personal experience - I don't know what your experience at the BBC is - not a single word of editorial instruction or even suggestion has been made to me from anyone at RT and the programme stands on its own merits."
Asked again if Russia was to blame for the Salisbury attack, Mr Salmond replied: "The evidence was presented at the time.
"I'm struggling to understand what this has got to do with a Scottish election campaign.
"It's perfectly legitimate for you to ask me about the programme I produce along with others and its broadcast on RT."
Geez! Alex Salmond with a programme on Russia Today refuses to answer the question as to whether the Russians were behind the poisoning of Sergei Skripal. Extraordinary. There’s your news agenda for the rest of the day.... #BBCgms
Pressed for a fourth time, the ex-SNP leader added: "Evidence came forward as contested, I said it should go to the international tribunals and courts.
"I said that at the time and I think the evidence came forward and people can see it for what it is.
"But what I say to you Gary is, the programme which you have suggested and segued into my views on international politics because I happen to produce a television programme which is broadcast and produced independently and broadcast on RT is quite an extraordinary thing for another broadcaster to do who should be maintaining people's right to have freedom of expression and produce programmes if they're independently produced and done."
Earlier in the radio interview, Mr Salmond suggested the evidence of Russian interference in recent US elections was "very slight".
Both Mr Salmond and Ms Ahmed-Sheikh, a former SNP MP, are standing as Alba Party candidates at the Scottish parliament elections on 6 May.
Former Scottish Conservative leader Murdo Fraser accused Mr Salmond of "desperately trying to evade" questions during the BBC radio interview and claimed Scottish voters "will be horrified at the prospect of him calling the shots at Holyrood after May".
SNP MP Pete Wishart posted on Twitter: "Geez! Alex Salmond with a programme on Russia Today refuses to answer the question as to whether the Russians were behind the poisoning of Sergei Skripal. Extraordinary."
A 24-year-old carer has become the first person in the UK to receive the Moderna vaccine as it becomes the latest jab used in the country's vaccination programme.
Elle Taylor, from Ammanford in Wales, who is an unpaid carer for her 82-year-old grandmother, received the vaccine this morning.
"I'm very excited and very happy," she said. "I'm an unpaid carer for my grandmother so it is very important to me that I get it, so I can care for her properly and safely.
"My grandmother has had her first dose and she is going for her second dose on Saturday."
Miss Taylor, who works at a further education college in Llanelli, received the Moderna jab from staff nurse Laura French at West Wales General Hospital in Carmarthen.
She said she only found out on Tuesday evening that she was to be the first Briton to receive the Moderna jab in the UK.
More from Covid-19
First doses of the Moderna jab are being administered at West Wales General Hospital on Wednesday, with a total of 5,000 doses having been distributed to vaccination centres across Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire.
Supplies of the Moderna vaccine arrived in Wales on Tuesday.
Moderna's vaccine is the third to be approved for use in the UK, and is being rolled out alongside jabs from Pfizer-BioNTech and Oxford University-AstraZeneca.
The UK has purchased 17 million doses of the Moderna jab, enough for 8.5 million people, and phase three results suggest the vaccine has 100% efficacy against severe cases of coronavirus.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson urged people to "please get your jab as soon as you are contacted".
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: "I'm delighted we can start the UK rollout of the Moderna vaccine in west Wales today.
"The UK government has secured vaccines on behalf of the entire nation and the vaccination programme has shown our country working together at its best.
"Three out of every five people across the whole United Kingdom have received at least one dose, and today we start with the third approved vaccine. Wherever you live, when you get the call, get the jab."
Wales health minister Vaughan Gething added that the introduction of a third vaccine "significantly adds to our defences in the face of coronavirus and will help protect our most vulnerable".
UK government minister Paul Scully told Sky News the Moderna jab would be "coming to England and the other devolved nations across the next few days".
"You've heard the vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi talk about the third week of April, we're already just about to start the second week of April so that's not too long to wait to get that third vaccine up and running," he added.
Scotland received its first batch of Moderna vaccines on Monday.
According to Moderna, no serious safety concerns have been identified among those who have taken its vaccine. Severe events after the first dose have included pain around the injection site, while some have reported fatigue, muscle pain, joint pain and headaches after receiving their second dose.
Image:The UK now has three vaccines approved - from Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Moderna. Pic: AP
It comes after a trial of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine on children in the UK was paused while the medicines regulator investigates a possible link between the jab and rare blood clots in adults.
A University of Oxford spokesperson stressed that there were "no safety concerns" with this specific study, but that further information was being awaited from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Concerns raised over Oxford vaccine
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said: "No decisions have been made on whether children should be offered vaccinations.
"We will be guided by the advice of our experts on these issues including the independent MHRA and Joint Committee on Vaccines and Immunisation."
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
'MHRA will only vaccinate when it's safe
Over the weekend, it was reported that there had been 30 blood clotting casesrecorded by the MHRA out of more than 18 million doses of the AstraZeneca shot administered.
The MHRA confirmed that of those 30 people, seven had died as of 24 March.
The World Health Organisation maintains that the benefits of this vaccine outweigh any risks.
Adam Finn, professor of paediatrics at the University of Bristol, said: "There are some things that are very clear. The first is that these cases are very rare indeed. The second is that the vaccines that are available and in use in the UK prevent COVID very effectively."
He added: "In short, if you are currently being offered a dose of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, your chances of remaining alive and well will go up if you take the vaccine and will go down if you don't."
Analysis: Could safety concerns derail UK's vaccine rollout? By Ashish Joshi, health correspondent
The ongoing safety concerns about the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine do not seem to have crossed the Channel. At least not yet.
The possible link between it and a rare type of blood clot has been around for a few weeks now.
Some governments in Europe have decided that they will not administer the jab to younger people.
That is against the advice of European Medicines Agency and the World Health Organisation.
But could these safety concerns actually derail the UK's phenomenal vaccine rollout? Potentially yes, but realistically it is unlikely. There are a number of reasons.
Vaccine hesitancy in much more culturally entrenched on the continent, especially in France and Germany. It is not as serious here among the wider population.
But clearly there are parts of the population where it is a concern, like our black and ethnic minority communities.
Also the rollout has been so successful that we are working through our target groups very quickly.
These are the ones who are most at risk: the clinically vulnerable and the elderly.
We know that our senior citizens are most compliant where vaccines are concerned.
Hesitancy becomes more prevalent in younger people. By the time we get round to vaccinating the under-40s, more vaccines will be on stream.
So if there is still uncertainty over the Oxford vaccine then it is possible an alternative can be administered.
This was simply not possible at the start of the rollout - the urgency demanded speed and scale.
For now the most significant bump in the road is the dramatic slowdown in the number of people being vaccinated. The Easter bank holidays could be a factor, and so is vaccine supply.
We were warned that this would happen. The government's own scientists have forecast a significant drop in vaccine doses being administered until the end of July.
But that has not dented the government's confidence. It says we are still on track to meet its target of vaccinating all adults by the end of July.
A 24-year-old carer has become the first person in the UK to receive the Moderna vaccine as it becomes the latest jab used in the country's vaccination programme.
Elle Taylor, from Ammanford in Wales, who is an unpaid carer for her 82-year-old grandmother, received the vaccine this morning.
"I'm very excited and very happy," she said. "I'm an unpaid carer for my grandmother so it is very important to me that I get it, so I can care for her properly and safely.
"My grandmother has had her first dose and she is going for her second dose on Saturday."
Miss Taylor, who works at a further education college in Llanelli, received the Moderna jab from staff nurse Laura French at West Wales General Hospital in Carmathen.
She said she only found out on Tuesday evening that she was to be the first Briton to receive the Moderna jab in the UK.
More from Covid-19
First doses of the Moderna jab are being administered at West Wales General Hospital on Wednesday, with a total of 5,000 doses having been distributed to vaccination centres across Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire.
Supplies of the Moderna vaccine arrived in Wales on Tuesday.
Moderna's vaccine is the third to be approved for use in the UK, and is being rolled out alongside jabs from Pfizer-BioNTech and Oxford University-AstraZeneca.
The UK has purchased 17 million doses of the Moderna jab, enough for 8.5 million people, and phase three results suggest the vaccine has 100% efficacy against severe cases of coronavirus.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson urged people to "please get your jab as soon as you are contacted".
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: "I'm delighted we can start the UK rollout of the Moderna vaccine in west Wales today.
"The UK government has secured vaccines on behalf of the entire nation and the vaccination programme has shown our country working together at its best.
"Three out of every five people across the whole United Kingdom have received at least one dose, and today we start with the third approved vaccine. Wherever you live, when you get the call, get the jab."
Wales health minister Vaughan Gething added that the introduction of a third vaccine "significantly adds to our defences in the face of coronavirus and will help protect our most vulnerable".
UK government minister Paul Scully told Sky News the Moderna jab would be "coming to England and the other devolved nations across the next few days".
"You've heard the vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi talk about the third week of April, we're already just about to start the second week of April so that's not too long to wait to get that third vaccine up and running," he added.
Scotland received its first batch of Moderna vaccines on Monday.
According to Moderna, no serious safety concerns have been identified among those who have taken its vaccine. Severe events after the first dose have included pain around the injection site, while some have reported fatigue, muscle pain, joint pain and headaches after receiving their second dose.
Image:The UK now has three vaccines approved - from Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Moderna. Pic: AP
It comes after a trial of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine on children in the UK was paused while the medicines regulator investigates a possible link between the jab and rare blood clots in adults.
A University of Oxford spokesperson stressed that there were "no safety concerns" with this specific study, but that further information was being awaited from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Concerns raised over Oxford vaccine
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said: "No decisions have been made on whether children should be offered vaccinations.
"We will be guided by the advice of our experts on these issues including the independent MHRA and Joint Committee on Vaccines and Immunisation."
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
'MHRA will only vaccinate when it's safe
Over the weekend, it was reported that there had been 30 blood clotting casesrecorded by the MHRA out of more than 18 million doses of the AstraZeneca shot administered.
The MHRA confirmed that of those 30 people, seven had died as of 24 March.
The World Health Organisation maintains that the benefits of this vaccine outweigh any risks.
Adam Finn, professor of paediatrics at the University of Bristol, said: "There are some things that are very clear. The first is that these cases are very rare indeed. The second is that the vaccines that are available and in use in the UK prevent COVID very effectively."
He added: "In short, if you are currently being offered a dose of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, your chances of remaining alive and well will go up if you take the vaccine and will go down if you don't."
Analysis: Could safety concerns derail UK's vaccine rollout? By Ashish Joshi, health correspondent
The ongoing safety concerns about the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine do not seem to have crossed the Channel. At least not yet.
The possible link between it and a rare type of blood clot has been around for a few weeks now.
Some governments in Europe have decided that they will not administer the jab to younger people.
That is against the advice of European Medicines Agency and the World Health Organisation.
But could these safety concerns actually derail the UK's phenomenal vaccine rollout? Potentially yes, but realistically it is unlikely. There are a number of reasons.
Vaccine hesitancy in much more culturally entrenched on the continent, especially in France and Germany. It is not as serious here among the wider population.
But clearly there are parts of the population where it is a concern, like our black and ethnic minority communities.
Also the rollout has been so successful that we are working through our target groups very quickly.
These are the ones who are most at risk: the clinically vulnerable and the elderly.
We know that our senior citizens are most compliant where vaccines are concerned.
Hesitancy becomes more prevalent in younger people. By the time we get round to vaccinating the under-40s, more vaccines will be on stream.
So if there is still uncertainty over the Oxford vaccine then it is possible an alternative can be administered.
This was simply not possible at the start of the rollout - the urgency demanded speed and scale.
For now the most significant bump in the road is the dramatic slowdown in the number of people being vaccinated. The Easter bank holidays could be a factor, and so is vaccine supply.
We were warned that this would happen. The government's own scientists have forecast a significant drop in vaccine doses being administered until the end of July.
But that has not dented the government's confidence. It says we are still on track to meet its target of vaccinating all adults by the end of July.
A 24-year-old carer has become the first person in the UK to receive the Moderna vaccine as it becomes the latest jab used in the country's vaccination programme.
Elle Taylor, from Ammanford in Wales, who is an unpaid carer for her 82-year-old grandmother, received the vaccine this morning.
First doses of the jab are being administered at West Wales General Hospital in Carmarthen - and a total of 5,000 doses have been distributed to vaccination centres.
Moderna's vaccine is the third to be approved for use in the UK, and is being rolled out alongside jabs from Pfizer-BioNTech and Oxford University-AstraZeneca.
The UK has purchased 17 million doses of the Moderna jab, enough for 8.5 million people, and phase three results suggest the vaccine has 100% efficacy against severe cases of coronavirus.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson urged people to "please get your jab as soon as you are contacted".
More from Covid-19
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: "I'm delighted we can start the UK rollout of the Moderna vaccine in west Wales today.
"The UK government has secured vaccines on behalf of the entire nation and the vaccination programme has shown our country working together at its best.
"Three out of every five people across the whole United Kingdom have received at least one dose, and today we start with the third approved vaccine. Wherever you live, when you get the call, get the jab."
Wales health minister Vaughan Gething added that the introduction of a third vaccine "significantly adds to our defences in the face of coronavirus and will help protect our most vulnerable".
UK government minister Paul Scully told Sky News the Moderna jab would be "coming to England and the other devolved nations across the next few days".
"You've heard the vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi talk about the third week of April, we're already just about to start the second week of April so that's not too long to wait to get that third vaccine up and running," he added.
Scotland received its first batch of Moderna vaccines on Monday.
According to Moderna, no serious safety concerns have been identified among those who have taken its vaccine. Severe events after the first dose have included pain around the injection site, while some have reported fatigue, muscle pain, joint pain and headaches after receiving their second dose.
Image:The UK now has three vaccines approved - from Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Moderna. Pic: AP
It comes after a trial of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine on children in the UK was paused while the medicines regulator investigates a possible link between the jab and rare blood clots in adults.
A University of Oxford spokesperson stressed that there were "no safety concerns" with this specific study, but that further information was being awaited from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Concerns raised over Oxford vaccine
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said: "No decisions have been made on whether children should be offered vaccinations.
"We will be guided by the advice of our experts on these issues including the independent MHRA and Joint Committee on Vaccines and Immunisation."
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
'MHRA will only vaccinate when it's safe
Over the weekend, it was reported that there had been 30 blood clotting casesrecorded by the MHRA out of more than 18 million doses of the AstraZeneca shot administered.
The MHRA confirmed that of those 30 people, seven had died as of 24 March.
The World Health Organisation maintains that the benefits of this vaccine outweigh any risks.
Adam Finn, professor of paediatrics at the University of Bristol, said: "There are some things that are very clear. The first is that these cases are very rare indeed. The second is that the vaccines that are available and in use in the UK prevent COVID very effectively."
He added: "In short, if you are currently being offered a dose of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, your chances of remaining alive and well will go up if you take the vaccine and will go down if you don't."
Analysis: Could safety concerns derail UK's vaccine rollout? By Ashish Joshi, health correspondent
The ongoing safety concerns about the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine do not seem to have crossed the Channel. At least not yet.
The possible link between it and a rare type of blood clot has been around for a few weeks now.
Some governments in Europe have decided that they will not administer the jab to younger people.
That is against the advice of European Medicines Agency and the World Health Organisation.
But could these safety concerns actually derail the UK's phenomenal vaccine rollout? Potentially yes, but realistically it is unlikely. There are a number of reasons.
Vaccine hesitancy in much more culturally entrenched on the continent, especially in France and Germany. It is not as serious here among the wider population.
But clearly there are parts of the population where it is a concern, like our black and ethnic minority communities.
Also the rollout has been so successful that we are working through our target groups very quickly.
These are the ones who are most at risk: the clinically vulnerable and the elderly.
We know that our senior citizens are most compliant where vaccines are concerned.
Hesitancy becomes more prevalent in younger people. By the time we get round to vaccinating the under-40s, more vaccines will be on stream.
So if there is still uncertainty over the Oxford vaccine then it is possible an alternative can be administered.
This was simply not possible at the start of the rollout - the urgency demanded speed and scale.
For now the most significant bump in the road is the dramatic slowdown in the number of people being vaccinated. The Easter bank holidays could be a factor, and so is vaccine supply.
We were warned that this would happen. The government's own scientists have forecast a significant drop in vaccine doses being administered until the end of July.
But that has not dented the government's confidence. It says we are still on track to meet its target of vaccinating all adults by the end of July.
Here are five things you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic this Wednesday morning. We'll have another update for you this evening.
1. Moderna Covid vaccine rollout to begin
A third Covid-19 vaccine will be rolled out in the UK later. The Moderna vaccine follows the Pfizer-BioNTech and Oxford-AstraZeneca jabs, which are already widely in use. Seventeen million doses were ordered by the government and Wales will become the first nation to administer the two-dose vaccine in Carmarthenshire later today. Wales Health Minister Vaughan Gething says a third vaccine "significantly adds" to defences against Covid-19. "Every vaccine given to someone in Wales is a small victory against the virus," he says. Scotland has received its first Moderna batch but not confirmed a rollout date. Neither has England, but yesterday the UK government's vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi said the Moderna vaccine would be deployed "around the third week of April".
Getty Images
2. Brazil daily Covid deaths top 4,000 for first time
Brazil has recorded more than 4,000 Covid-related deaths in 24 hours for the first time, as a more contagious variant fuels a surge in cases. Hospitals are overcrowded, with people dying as they wait for treatment in some cities, and the health system is on the brink of collapse in many areas. The country's total death toll is now almost 337,000, second only to the US. But President Jair Bolsonaro continues to oppose any lockdown measures to curb the outbreak. He argues that the damage to the economy would be worse than the effects of the virus itself, and has tried to revert some of the restrictions imposed by local authorities in the courts.
Reuters
3. Covid-19 raises risk of depression and dementia, study suggests
Covid-19 raises the risk of depression, dementia, psychosis and stroke, a study finds. A third of those with a previous Covid infection went on to develop or have a relapse of a psychological or neurological condition but those admitted to hospital or in intensive care had an even higher risk. This is likely to be down to both the effects of stress, and the virus having a direct impact on the brain. UK scientists looked at the electronic medical records from the previous six months of more than half a million patients in the US, and their chances of developing one of 14 common psychological or neurological conditions.
Getty Images
4. Schools 'a lifeline to many students' in past year'
The US is facing shortages of tomato ketchup after the coronavirus pandemic led to a surge in demand for sachets of the popular condiment. Heinz, the most widely sold brand of ketchup, says the rise in demand had been "driven by... accelerated delivery and take-out trends". The packs often accompany delivery orders and have effectively replaced the bottles kept on restaurant tables. The company says it has stepped up production.
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The Moderna vaccine is going to be given to patients in the UK for the first time today.
First doses of the jab are going to be administered at West Wales General Hospital in Carmarthen - and a total of 5,000 doses have been distributed to vaccination centres.
Moderna's vaccine is the third to be approved for use in the UK, and will be rolled out alongside jabs from Pfizer-BioNTech and Oxford University-AstraZeneca.
The UK has purchased 17 million doses of the Moderna jab, enough for 8.5 million people, and phase three results suggest the vaccine has 100% efficacy against severe cases of coronavirus.
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Prime Minister Boris Johnson urged people to "please get your jab as soon as you are contacted".
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: "I'm delighted we can start the UK rollout of the Moderna vaccine in west Wales today.
More from Covid-19
"The UK government has secured vaccines on behalf of the entire nation and the vaccination programme has shown our country working together at its best.
"Three out of every five people across the whole United Kingdom have received at least one dose, and today we start with the third approved vaccine. Wherever you live, when you get the call, get the jab."
Wales health minister Vaughan Gething added that the introduction of a third vaccine "significantly adds to our defences in the face of coronavirus and will help protect our most vulnerable".
Image:The UK now has three vaccines approved - from Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Moderna. Pic: AP
UK government minister Paul Scully told Sky News the Moderna jab would be "coming to England and the other devolved nations across the next few days".
"You've heard the vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi talk about the third week of April, we're already just about to start the second week of April so that's not too long to wait to get that third vaccine up and running," he added.
Scotland received its first batch of Moderna vaccines on Monday.
According to Moderna, no serious safety concerns have been identified among those who have taken its vaccine. Severe events after the first dose have included pain around the injection site, while some have reported fatigue, muscle pain, joint pain and headaches after receiving their second dose.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Concerns raised over Oxford vaccine
It comes after a trial of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine on children in the UK was paused while the medicines regulator investigates a possible link between the jab and rare blood clots in adults.
A University of Oxford spokesperson stressed that there were "no safety concerns" with this specific study, but that further information was being awaited from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
'MHRA will only vaccinate when it's safe
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said: "No decisions have been made on whether children should be offered vaccinations.
"We will be guided by the advice of our experts on these issues including the independent MHRA and Joint Committee on Vaccines and Immunisation."
Over the weekend, it was reported that there had been 30 blood clotting casesrecorded by the MHRA out of more than 18 million doses of the AstraZeneca shot administered.
The MHRA confirmed that of those 30 people, seven had died as of 24 March.
The World Health Organisation maintains that the benefits of this vaccine outweigh any risks.
Adam Finn, professor of paediatrics at the University of Bristol, said: "There are some things that are very clear. The first is that these cases are very rare indeed. The second is that the vaccines that are available and in use in the UK prevent COVID very effectively."
He added: "In short, if you are currently being offered a dose of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, your chances of remaining alive and well will go up if you take the vaccine and will go down if you don't."
Analysis: Could safety concerns derail UK's vaccine rollout? By Ashish Joshi, health correspondent
The ongoing safety concerns about the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine do not seem to have crossed the Channel. At least not yet.
The possible link between it and a rare type of blood clot has been around for a few weeks now.
Some governments in Europe have decided that they will not administer the jab to younger people.
That is against the advice of European Medicines Agency and the World Health Organisation.
But could these safety concerns actually derail the UK's phenomenal vaccine rollout? Potentially yes, but realistically it is unlikely. There are a number of reasons.
Vaccine hesitancy in much more culturally entrenched on the continent, especially in France and Germany. It is not as serious here among the wider population.
But clearly there are parts of the population where it is a concern, like our black and ethnic minority communities.
Also the rollout has been so successful that we are working through our target groups very quickly.
These are the ones who are most at risk: the clinically vulnerable and the elderly.
We know that our senior citizens are most compliant where vaccines are concerned.
Hesitancy becomes more prevalent in younger people. By the time we get round to vaccinating the under-40s, more vaccines will be on stream.
So if there is still uncertainty over the Oxford vaccine then it is possible an alternative can be administered.
This was simply not possible at the start of the rollout - the urgency demanded speed and scale.
For now the most significant bump in the road is the dramatic slowdown in the number of people being vaccinated. The Easter bank holidays could be a factor, and so is vaccine supply.
We were warned that this would happen. The government's own scientists have forecast a significant drop in vaccine doses being administered until the end of July.
But that has not dented the government's confidence. It says we are still on track to meet its target of vaccinating all adults by the end of July.
