UK gets “safer every day” but infection rate still alarmingly high: vaccine minister

LONDON : Britain is “getting safer every day” as more people are given coronavirus vaccines, but the infection level is still “alarmingly high”, British vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi said Thursday.

Almost one in five adults in Britain have now been vaccinated, Zahawi said in a statement at the House of Commons, lower house of the British parliament. More than 10 million people in Britain have received the first dose of the coronavirus vaccine, which means 15 percent of Britain’s population have had their first coronavirus jab, according to the latest official figures.

Zahawi paid tribute to those who have worked “night and day” on this “huge logistical endeavour”, hailing it as “the combination of the best” of Britain.

However, there are still 32,000 people in hospital with coronavirus and the level of infection is still “alarmingly high”, he noted. Zahawi said about 40 new vaccination sites have opened this week as part of the British government’s “ambitious plan” to roll out the vaccines. Britain aims to deliver a first dose to 15 million of the most vulnerable by mid-February and to offer all adults their first dose by autumn.

Chief Medical Officer for England Chris Whitty said Wednesday at a Downing Street press briefing that it looks as if Britain is “past the peak” of its current wave, but he warned of another peak if restriction is relaxed too soon. Another 19,202 people in Britain have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 3,871,825, according to official figures released Wednesday.

The country also reported another 1,322 coronavirus-related deaths. The total number of coronavirus-related deaths in Britain now stands at 109,335. These figures only include the deaths of people who died within 28 days of their first positive test.

England is currently under the third national lockdown since the outbreak of the pandemic in the country. Similar restriction measures are also in place in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Germany, Russia and the United States have been racing against time to roll out coronavirus vaccines.