Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Coronavirus: First supplies of Covid-19 vaccine arrive in Scotland

Post Thumbnail

The first supplies of the new Covid-19 vaccine have arrived in Scotland.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon confirmed the news in a post on Twitter.

She said: “Some positive news – initial supplies of the Covid vaccine have now arrived safely in Scotland and are being stored securely. The first vaccinations are on track to be administered on Tuesday.”

Over the next few months the aim is to distribute the vaccine to more than four million adults across the country with those most in need getting the treatment first.

Those charged with giving the vaccine to others will be the first to receive the course, which requires two doses between 21 and 28 days apart.

At a daily briefing last week, Nicola Sturgeon said she would be prepared to get the Covid vaccine on live television if she thought it would persuade others to get it.

The news comes after the Scottish Government confirmed a further 22 people have died after testing positive for the virus.

The daily update also showed there have been 777 new positive cases confirmed in the past 24 hours.

Britain’s medical authorities approved the rollout of the Pfizer and BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine on Wednesday morning, paving the way for vaccination to start next week.

The jab has been shown in studies to be 95% effective and works in all age groups.

‘Escaping this terrible virus’

Health Secretary Jeane Freeman

Health secretary Jeanne Freeman told the BBC: “I am pleased to announce that the vaccine is now in Scotland and being stored safely in order for vaccinations to begin on Tuesday. Science has given us hope and we are starting on a journey which will eventually allow us to escape this terrible virus.

“Following clinical advice from the joint committee on vaccination and immunisation (JCVI) we will begin with those groups which have been prioritised to address 99% of preventable deaths associated with Covid-19. These include the elderly, care home residents and staff, and frontline health and social care workers.

“I ask everyone to be patient as we work through these groups as vaccine supply allows. I urge you to go for the vaccine when it’s your turn, but continue to follow the rules as set out in FACTS. And we will eventually reach the end of this pandemic by working together.”


Covid-19 vaccine: Further reading