- Title: Britons line up for jabs as COVID-19 booster programme accelerates
- Date: 14th December 2021
- Summary: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (DECEMBER 14, 2021) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF ST. THOMAS' HOSPITAL EXTERIOR OF SAINT THOMAS' HOSPITAL / PEOPLE QUEUING FOR COVID-19 BOOSTER JABS OUTSIDE HOSPITAL VARIOUS OF PEOPLE ON BRIDGE QUEUING FOR COVID-19 BOOSTER JABS
- Embargoed: 28th December 2021 09:19
- Keywords: AstraZeneca Covid-19 Pfizer booster coronavirus jab vaccine
- Location: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
- City: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
- Country: United Kingdom
- Topics: Europe,Health/Medicine
- Reuters ID: LVA001F80FFIF
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Long queues formed in central London on Tuesday (December 14) as people lined up to get their COVID-19 booster jabs. At St. Thomas' Hospital Vaccination Centre in central London, the queue snaked back onto Westminster Bridge.
In a televised statement on Sunday (December 12), British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the booster programme would be accelerated, with all adults able to receive a third vaccine dose before the end of the year.
Johnson added that with Omicron known to be much more transmissible than other variants, the National Health Service would struggle to cope with hospitalisations if the variant were to tear through an un-boosted population.
On Monday (December 13), Johnson confirmed the UK's first death with the Omicron coronavirus variant, the first publicly confirmed death globally from the swiftly spreading strain.
British Health Secretary Sajid Javid said the variant now accounted for 44% of infections in London and would be the dominant strain in the capital within 48 hours.
(Production: Toby Melville, Jeevan Ravindran) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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