10 million people have now received Covid booster jabs, Boris Johnson announces
7 November 2021, 16:44 | Updated: 7 November 2021, 18:02
More than 10 million people have now had a coronavirus booster jab, the government has announced.
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It comes after Boris Johnson's government urged elderly and vulnerable people to get their booster jabs as part of a "national mission" to avoid a return to restrictions over Christmas.
The latest government data show 10,062,704 people in the UK have received their third doses, with the programme having started in mid-September.
Prime minister Mr Johnson, who will be welcoming the good news after a week in which he has been branded corrupt over his handling of the Owen Paterson sleaze saga, said: "An amazing 10 million people across the UK have already come forward for their booster.
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"We know vaccine immunity wanes over time, so boosters are vital in keeping you and your loved ones protected through the winter.
"Please get this lifesaving jab as soon as you are called."
The 10,062,704 jabs delivered so far represent 17.5 per cent of the population of over-12s who will be eligible for a booster.
It comes as the chief medical adviser at the UK Health Security Agency said the number of deaths among the double-vaccinated population is on the rise as protection weakens.
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Dr Susan Hopkins said: "We're still seeing deaths in mainly the unvaccinated population, but increasingly, because of immune waning effects, there are deaths in the vaccinated group as well.
"The people who are dying are the same people who have died all the way through.
"It is particularly the older age groups, so the over-70s in particular, but also those who are clinically vulnerable, extremely vulnerable, and have underlying medical conditions."
People over 50 and those most at risk from Covid are currently eligible for a booster six months after their second jab.
About 30 per cent of over-80s and 40 per cent of over-50s in England are yet to receive a booster.
