Over-35s will be able to book their Covid-19 jabs within days says Matt Hancock

He told the BBC: “This coming week we’re going to be opening up vaccination to the 35s-and-over across the country because this isn’t just about accelerating the vaccination programme in Bolton, it’s about going as fast as we possibly can nationwide.”

Matt Hancock said it is “quite likely” the Indian variant of Covid-19 will become the dominant variant in the UK.

He told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show: “I think it’s quite likely this will become the dominant variant. We don’t know exactly how much more transmissible it is but I think it is likely it will become the dominant variant here.

“What that reinforces is the importance of people coming forward for testing and being careful because this isn’t over yet.

“But the good news is because we have increasing confidence that the vaccine works against the variant, the strategy is on track – it’s just the virus has just gained a bit of pace and we’ve therefore all got to be that bit much more careful and cautious.”

The Health Secretary said five people who have had a single jab have been hospitalised with the Indian variant in Bolton, and one who had received both.

He told The Andrew Marr Show on the BBC: “We think that there are five people who have ended up in hospital having had one jab.”

Asked about people who have received two jabs, he said: “We think there’s one person, but that person was frail.

“A small number have had one jab and then there’s one case where they’ve had two jabs and they’ve ended up in hospital and they were frail.”

Asked if anyone had died with the Indian variant after receiving two jabs, Mr Hancock said: “Not that we’re aware of.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is facing criticism over the timing of adding India to the travel red list requiring quarantine amid concern that the coronavirus variant first discovered there is now spreading quickly in the UK,

India was reporting more than 100,000 cases a day by 5 April, but was not added to the red list until 23 April.

The government said the UK has “some of the toughest border measures”.

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