A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said:
“The Government has today accepted the recommendation from
the independent Medicines and
Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)to approve
Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine for use. This follows
months of rigorous clinical trials and a thorough analysis
of the data by experts at the MHRA who have concluded that
the vaccine has met its strict standards of safety, quality
and effectiveness.
“The Joint Committee on
Vaccinations and Immunisations (JCVI) will shortly
publish its final advice for the priority groups to receive
the vaccine, including care home residents, health and care
staff, the elderly and the clinically extremely vulnerable.
“The vaccine will be made available across the UK from next
week. The NHS has decades of experience in delivering large
scale vaccination programmes and will begin putting their
extensive preparations into action to provide care and
support to all those eligible for vaccination.
“To aid the success of the vaccination programme it is
vital everyone continues to play their part and abide by
the necessary restrictions in their area so we can further
suppress the virus and allow the NHS to do its work without
being overwhelmed.
“Further details will be set out shortly.”
