Chart shows how quickly the UK is vaccinating compared with the rest of the world
More than 5 million COVID-19 vaccine doses have now been administered across the UK, Matt Hancock announced on Thursday.
Revealing the latest data, the health secretary said 63% of care home residents have received at least one dose, and that the NHS was rolling out jabs at a rate of 200 every minute.
The UK was one of the first countries to approve a coronavirus vaccine, with Boris Johnson pledging that everyone in the four most vulnerable groups will have been offered a vaccine by mid-February.
This chart shows the countries that have administered the most doses per 100 people since the start of the rollout
The data in the chart shows the number of doses administered rather than the number of people who have received a jab. Each person needs to be given two doses of the vaccine in order to gain the highest possible level of immunity.
In total, more than 53 million doses of coronavirus vaccines have now been administered globally.
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According to the most recent figures, Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain have administered the most doses per 100 people.
The UK is fourth in the global race, followed by the US.
Israel is so far the only country to have vaccinated more than a third of the population.
After initial success with the vaccine rollout, which has been called the “light at the end of the tunnel” by chief scientific adviser Patrick Vallance, the difficulties of getting vaccines to those who need them began to emerge in the UK this week.
On Monday, the number of people receiving their first dose dropped for the third day in a row after a dip in supply from drugmaker Pfizer.
Home secretary Priti Patel warned the country will face “inconsistencies” due to issues with vaccine supply.
Watch: Almost two-thirds of elderly care home residents in the UK have had a COVID jab
Meanwhile, the Welsh government has been embroiled in controversy over whether it is following a “go-slow” vaccination strategy after data showed rates were lagging behind the other UK nations.
First minister Mark Drakeford dismissed the numbers as “very marginal differences”, but said there was “no point” in rushing to administer all available vaccines if it meant vaccinators were “standing around with nothing to do for another month”.
Boris Johnson said this week that the vaccination programme remained “on track” despite “constraints on supply”.
He told reporters: “We’re going absolutely as fast as we can and it is literally a race against time, a race to protect the elderly and the vulnerable in the context of what is still a very, very tough pandemic.
“There are still tough weeks to come.”
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