The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has formally authorised the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for Covid-19. The UK therefore becomes the first country in the world to license a vaccine.

Commenting on the development Dr Neil Hudson, MP for Penrith and The Border, said:

“This is fantastic news and shows the UK Government’s commitment to rolling out a vaccine programme.”

This gives the NHS the greenlight as it is preparing to start vaccinating as early as next week. With the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advising that the first groups to receive the vaccine should be as follows:

Neil added, “This is one step closer to the normality which I’m sure all of my constituents long for and presents a light at the end of the tunnel. Even though this is welcome progress, we must still be vigilant in abiding by the local restrictions in our area. Today marks the first day of Cumbria being under Tier 2 restrictions or ‘high alert’ the latest Government guidance for which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tier-2-high-alert. If we keep to the guidelines, we can keep combating the virus and hopefully a move to tier 1 in Cumbria could be possible. It is as important as ever to wash your hands, cover your face and give others space.”