Covid breakthrough: Boris urged to prioritise teachers after pledge to jab all by August
BORIS JOHNSON has been urged to prioritise key workers with Covid jabs after announcing new ambitious targets for the vaccination rollout programme.
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Earlier on Saturday, the Prime Minister declared that the Government was now aiming to offer all adults in the UK their first Covid jab by the end of July. This represents a significant speeding up of the vaccine rollout. The Government's previous target had been to provide first doses to adults by September.
While welcoming the decision, Labour called on the Mr Johnson to prioritise key workers, such as teachers and police, officers during the next stage of the inoculation process.
Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth said: "It's perfectly reasonable for teachers, police officers and other key workers who haven't been able to stay at home in the lockdown to ask when their turn will be.
"If Government aren't going to prioritise by occupation in the next phase, they need to set out why."
Mr Ashworth also called on the Government to ensure that people diagnosed with Covid received sufficient financial aide to encourage them to self-isolate at home.
Currently under statutory sick pay, employees are paid £95.85 a week, a bare minimum which many argue is inadequate support.
People who need to self-isolate are also entitled to receive a one off payment of £500 from the Government.
However, recent research has suggested that up to 80 percent of applicants for the Covid isolation payments are rejected.
A Government official told the INewspaper that "at least tens of thousands" of people do not observe isolations rules.
The official said: "It’s clear at least tens of thousands of people are going to work knowing or thinking they might have Covid because they feel they can’t afford not to."
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In a statement on Saturday, announcing the new vaccine targets, the Prime Minister said: "Hitting 15 million vaccinations was a significant milestone - but there will be no let up, and I want to see the rollout go further and faster in the coming weeks.
"We will now aim to offer a jab to every adult by the end of July, helping us protect the most vulnerable sooner, and take further steps to ease some of the restrictions in place."
The Government plans to publish its "roadmap" out of lockdown on Monday, paving the way to a return to some semblance of normal life.
Mr Johnson was keen to stress that the lockdown easing would be "cautious and phased."