London mayor ‘hugely concerned’ capital isn’t getting its ‘fair share’ of Covid-19 vaccines

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has expressed his concern that the capital is not getting enough coronavirus vaccines, as the city’s healthcare system battles against soaring Covid-19 hospitalisations. The NHS has rejected the claim.

In a tweet on Thursday, Khan said the city had only received a tenth of the vaccines delivered across the UK and this did not reflect a “fair share” for the capital. Khan suggested the city would fall short of its part in the UK’s target for vaccinating key risk groups by the middle of next month. 

The mayor’s claim was rebuffed by a National Health Service spokesman, who said: “London is getting its fair share of vaccine supply for the priority groups we have to vaccinate by mid-February.” 

The spokesperson added that more than 100 vaccination sites are in operation across the capital, with more set to open, and some 250,000 Londoners have already received their first dose of the two-part jab.

Earlier on Thursday, UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced that three million vaccines have been administered across the country. The UK is ramping up its rollout in a push to administer 13.9 million doses to the most vulnerable by mid-February. 

London is by far the UK area most afflicted by Covid, with two East End boroughs having the highest infection rate in all of the UK. The infection rate in Barking and Dagenham is 1,631.7 per 100,000 people – almost three times the national average, according to government data. Khan declared a “major incident” over London’s coronavirus spread a week ago. 

On Wednesday, London passed the solemn milestone of recording 10,000 Covid deaths. 

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