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MPs demand to know why government changed Covid-19 vaccination roll-out

MORE than 40 MPs have demanded to know why the government has changed the roll-out of the Covid-19 vaccination programme.

And local health centres have been told that the NHS centrally will be contacting vulnerable patients to invite them to be vaccinated – not local GPs.

The government changed tack after announcing that the vital second vaccination will be administered three months after the first injection, instead of three weeks.

Forty-one MPs have now signed a letter to Health Secretary Matt Hancock asking to be given the scientific evidence behind the decision to delay the second vaccination.

The letter has also been sent to the government’s “Minister for Vaccine Rollout” Nadhim Zahawi, and was originated by Olivia Blake, Labour MP for Sheffield Hallam, and member of the Socialist Campaign Group of MPs.

Ms Blake said the questions relate to “the scientific basis for recent changes to the coronavirus vaccination programme.” 

She wrote: “The two areas of concern are about government guidance which delays the second dose of the vaccine, and guidance which apparently allows vaccines from different manufacturers to be combined. 

“Neither of these approaches was trialled and certified by regulators.

“We welcome the vaccination programme and desperately want it to succeed. But for it to do so, the public must have confidence that there is a rigorous scientific basis to the policy decisions.”

The government says hundreds of new vaccination sites will be opened this week and that 530,000 doses of the newly approved Oxford University and AstraZeneca jab will be available.

It confirmed that second doses of the vaccine will take place within 12 weeks, and not the 21 days that was originally announced.

The government’s deputy chief medical officer Professor Jonathan Van-Tam said: “The virus is unfortunately spreading fast, and this is a race against time.”

Staff at one health centre in Yorkshire set up a vaccine “hotline” telephone number to enable vulnerable patients to make appointments to receive the vaccine.

But the hotline was shut down within days, and patients have been informed “the NHS will write to you.”

In Scotland, Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard said: “What is clear is that we need to see an acceleration of the vaccine roll-out and a step change in testing.”

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