The UK has recorded 52,618 new covid-19 cases and 1,162 further deaths in the latest 24-hour period.
This is the highest daily reported total since April 21 when 1,224 were recorded, the
It brings the UK total to 78,508.
Meanwhile The government is working with both Pfizer and AstraZeneca to increase vaccine supplies, health minister Matt Hancock has said.
“The rate limiting step is the supply of vaccine, and we’re working with the companies, both Pfizer and of course AstraZeneca, to increase the supply,” Hancock said earlier today.
“The manufacturers are doing a brilliant job, and they’re delivering to the schedule that’s agreed, but that schedule is the amount of vaccine that we have … we expect to see that amount of vaccine being delivered going up.”
Hancock said the aim was for most care home residents to be offered a shot by the end of January, with 13 million people in the top four priority cohorts reached by mid-February.
Nearly 20,000 second doses of Covid-19 vaccines were administered between December 29 and January 3, NHS England said.
Some 19,981 second Pfizer jabs were given as of Sunday, which was before the rollout of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine. All vaccinations given before December 29 were of first doses.
Overall, 308,541 people received a jab in the week ending Sunday January 3, taking the total number vaccinated in England since the rollout began to 1,112,866.
There has been a 24 per cent increase in people testing positive for the coronavirus in the week to 30 December in England, the country’s test and trace scheme has said.
The scheme contacted 92.3 per cent of the 493,573 people identified as close contacts of positive cases, a similar proportion to the week before.
