LISTEN: Health Minister Robin Swann welcomes approval of second Coronavirus vaccine

By Q Radio News and Rebecca Black

The Health Minister Robin Swann has welcomed the news that the second Coronavirus vaccine, the Oxford/Astrazeneca jab has been authorised for use across the UK.

In a tweet this morning he said deployment is expected to start by next week.

Welcome Four Nations Health Ministers call this morning as the @UniofOxford / @AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine has been authorised for use by the MRHA, and we expect deployment to start by next week.

— Robin Swann (@RobinSwann_MLA) December 30, 2020

The third surge of coronavirus cases expected next month could be short lived thanks to the new vaccine, according to the head of the British Medical Association, Dr Tom Black.

Dr Black says the rollout of the new jab could help to relieve pressure on the health service, but he has warned that things will get worse before they get better:

Dr Tom Black

First Minister Arlene Foster tweeted her delight at the new vaccine:

Delighted with Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine progress. The world class strength & brilliance of UK scientists means our wider vaccination programme should start across Northern Ireland next week.

80% of care homes have already received their first dose of Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.

— Arlene Foster DBE PC #ProudofNI. (@ArleneFosterUK) December 30, 2020

Mr Swann said the announcement is “extremely welcome news” but cautioned that the rollout will take time.

“The vaccine programme will transform the situation but that will take time,” he said.

Health Minister Robin Swann

“Between now and then, we need another big push to get through these next few months. We can all play our part in supporting the health service and in protecting each other from Covid-19.

“Please follow the public health advice to stop it spreading and please strictly abide by the current lockdown rules.”

Chief medical officer Dr Michael McBride said the development will make the vaccination programme more achievable.

“To now have a second vaccine authorised in the UK a matter of weeks after the first is a credit to all who contributed,” he said.

“I commend our scientists and pharmaceutical company partners, the MHRA and, most importantly, every single person who contributed to the clinical trials, including those from Northern Ireland.

“This is a vaccine that we can take more readily to people.

“It will make the task of vaccinating those most at risk and then the entire population over 50 years much more achievable.”

Patricia Donnelly, head of the Covid-19 vaccination programme in Northern Ireland, added: “The vaccination programme in Northern Ireland has already made an excellent start by focusing on the number one priority group as recommended by JCVI.

Patricia Donnelly

“The characteristics of this vaccine will ensure that we can now build on that progress and more rapidly scale-up the vaccination programme rollout, staying in line with the JCVI priority recommendations.”

Some 33,683 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine have been administered in the region.

This includes 8,940 care home residents, 10,484 care home staff and 14,259 frontline health staff.

Mr Swann said 80% of all care homes in Northern Ireland have been reached.

“33,683 vaccinations in a short space of time is a significant achievement for Northern Ireland,” he said.

“We are continuing to lead the way in delivering vaccine to our most vulnerable and our frontline workers, and I sincerely thank all those involved in making this possible, from the frontline vaccinators to the backroom pharmacy teams and those involved in storage and distribution who have worked incredibly hard to make sure the vaccine can be delivered to those who need it the most.”

and protect our health service.”