most of the european countries that
suspended the use of the oxford
astrazeneca vaccine have said they will
start using it again
after the eu's medical regulator
declared it safe and effective
italy germany france and spain are among
those resuming use of the jab
after a pause over fears of a link to
blood clots in a small number of people
here the uk's regulator said any link
between the jab
and clots is unproven and the benefits
of the astrazeneca vaccine
outweigh any risks here's our medical
editor fergus walsh
every injection every vaccine given is
another person protected
half a million people a day here are
getting immunized at present
many eu countries suspended using the
oxford astrazeneca jab
pending the outcome of today's safety
review
in hull there was no sign of vaccine
hesitancy
i was waiting a long time i'm like in my
60s i've only just really got myself
just happy it's finally done i just took
on board this is my appointment this is
what needs doing this is keeping
everyone safe so
let's go ahead and get it done the uk
medicines regulator said
after a rigorous review there was no
evidence that blood clots
were caused by the oxford astrazeneca
vaccine
it looked in particular at five cases of
rare clots in the brain among 11 million
people
immunized by the nhs all were men under
60
one of whom died it said given the link
was unproven
the benefits of the vaccine far
outweighed potential side effects for
those in their forties
the risk of dying after covert infection
is one in a thousand
as a precautionary measure it's advising
anyone with a headache
that lasts more than four days after
vaccination
to seek medical attention there is no
difference that blood clots in veins are
occurring
more than would be expected in the
absence of vaccination
for either vaccine the public can have
every confidence in the thoroughness of
our review
mrs emma and in amsterdam the european
medicines agency
has come to the same conclusion about
the astrazeneca jab
this is a safe and effective vaccine its
benefits in protecting
people from covet 19 with the associated
risks of death and hospitalization
outweigh the possible risks the
committee also concluded that the
vaccine
is not associated with an increase in
the overall risk of thromboembolic
events or blood clots
the prime minister who's 56 will get his
first dose
of the astrazeneca vaccine tomorrow and
said all adults would be offered a jab
by the end of july
our progress along the road to freedom
continues unchecked we remain on track
to reclaim the things we love to see our
families
and friends again to return to our local
pubs
our gyms and sports facilities and
uh of course our shops uh all
of course as long as the data continue
to go
in the right direction and we meet our
four
tests those in their 40s seem likely to
have to wait until may
to get their first vaccine because older
people will be getting their second shot
and there won't be enough extra doses to
go around
due to supply issues caused by a delay
in a delivery of vaccine from india
and a batch here that needed retesting
half of all adults in the uk have now
had a first dose of vaccine
the head of the nhs in england sir simon
stevens got the astrazeneca jab
at westminster abbey safe and effective
vaccines
will answer all our prayers to be
delivered
from this pandemic fergus bbc news
europe editor katja adler is in brussels
now safe and effective
is is the verdict is this going to be
enough to restore confidence
in the eu well sophie let me explain why
that is such
an important question because here in
mainland europe
coveted infections are again on the rise
if you have a look at parts of central
and eastern europe you have some of the
highest
death rates now in the whole world and
today france joined germany and
italy that recently said that they are
facing a third wave so the eu
desperately needs to vaccinate people
but it faces
two big problems number one is supply
the eu simply doesn't have enough
vaccines at the moment
and the second big problem is public
acceptance because many europeans sophie
are more vaccine-wary than their
counterparts
in the uk and eu leaders on-again
off-again relationship with the
astrazeneca jab
really hasn't helped matters i mean
remember back in january when some eu
leaders were suggesting
it might not be as effective in the over
65s
then they changed their minds now they
were the worries about
blood clots and so a lot of people have
been put off angela merkel admitted
that the jab has what she called an
acceptance problem
in germany and in france the prime
minister said he would be getting the
astrazeneca jab
in order to try and boost public
confidence but critics of how the eu has
handled all this say
it could be too late a lot of damage has
already been done
katya thank you and let's talk now to
our political editor laura ginsberg in
westminster
and concerns today about supplies of the
jab
here well that's right sophie after all
the squall over the vaccine over safety
and also over supplies we learned
yesterday there's a real slow down the
amount that would be arriving into the
uk
i think the prime minister himself felt
that he had to get out there
front up to the concerns because i think
there was a bit of a worry a bit of a
niggle inside government that there
might be some little hints about public
confidence not being where it should be
and it has in this country by comparison
with others in the european union being
sky
high so the prime minister was out there
saying reassurance on number one
its safety boasting of his own vaccine
tomorrow when he will be rolling up his
own sleeves
secondly on supply that although there
has been a bit of a slowdown and the
government won't be able to speed ahead
with their plan they will absolutely be
able to stick to their targets
by giving everybody over 18 their first
does by the end of july
and lastly he also was determined
to reassure on the bigger question the
vaccine's role in the gradual
opening of the country's doors and he
was adamant he said several times that
for now we would be sticking to the
so-called
road map moving cautiously and carefully
through different stages
but the vaccine is such a vital part of
that you could see today
the government's absolutely adamant they
do not want the public's faith
in the programme to be dented laura
ginsberg and westminster thank you