Nearly 60,000 have now had virus booster jab

On Sunday December 12, Prime Minister Boris Johnson revealed that every eligible adult in England was being offered a top-up injection by the end of December – a month earlier than previously planned because of the rise in Omicron variant cases

Data from the UK coronavirus dashboard shows at least 1,305 people in South Tyneside received a booster or third vaccine dose on Tuesday, December 14.

That was the highest daily number since the NHS booster jab campaign was launched in mid-September and followed followed the 867 people who received an extra dose on Monday.

57,512 people in South Tyneside had received a booster or third dose by December 14 – 42% of people over the age of 12.

Around 906,900 people across England received an extra dose over Monday and Tuesday.

England’s chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty said: “What we’ve got is two epidemics on top of one another – an existing Delta epidemic and a very rapidly-growing Omicron epidemic.”

Dr Emily Lawson, head of the NHS Covid-19 vaccination programme in England, said: “The NHS Covid-19 vaccination programme is once again pulling out all the stops to protect the country from this virus.

“This is by far the most complex but critical phase of the vaccination drive and the booster is our best hope of protecting people against the new variant. It is vital people come forward to be jabbed as soon as possible.”