The Covid vaccine division in England was exposed today. Only a fifth (55%) of those over 50 had been given their booster shot in England.
MailOnline Analysis shows that third doses have been distributed to some regions, reaching 90 percent of vulnerable adults who were previously prioritized during the rollout.
Over-40s were able to receive boosters today. No10 targeted Christmas shoppers to provide ‘booster buses’ to speed up the uptake.
The Omicron supermutant variant has led to it being accused of being slow and sluggish. Ministers repeatedly stated that boosters were crucial to stopping the threat from the wave.
NHS England’s most up-to-date vaccination statistics show thousands of neighbourhoods dotted across the country have already given third doses to the majority of adults.
This website has an analysis that shows how many inner-city neighborhoods are still behind on the roll-out.
Sparkhill North in Birmingham was home to just 21 percent of those over 50. 13 other areas, scattered among Birmingham, Nottingham and Essex, also fell below the 25 percent mark.
Experts condemned the uneven rollout because it made areas of the country more susceptible to the wave.
MailOnline was informed by Professor David Livermore (a medical microbiologist from the University of East Anglia): ‘These data clearly reveal substantial variation in booster roll-out efficiency. The NHS should restart delivery of the program in areas that are not performing well.
The Covid vaccine divide in England was exposed today. Only a fifth (25%) of those over 50 had received their third dose in certain parts of England. Graph: This graph shows the proportion of those who received a third dose from local authorities in different parts of the country.
By November 28, only 21 percent of Sparkhill North residents over 50 had been given a third vaccination. This suburb is located in Birmingham. There are also thirteen other locations between Birmingham and Nottingham that fall under the 25% mark.
No10 last week announced that it will increase the booster program to 500,000 jabs daily and provide a third dose for all 53 million British adults before the end of January in order to protect against the coming wave. However, the scheme is already in trouble with less than 330,000 doses delivered to Britain yesterday and only 380,000 being administered per day. The current pace means that all eligible adults will not receive a boost until February 10.
Figure 1: This graph illustrates the percentage of children aged 12 years and older who have received their first dose of Covid in England or Scotland.
Figure 1: The top ten and bottom ten performing areas in England when it comes to the uptake of Covid vaccine.
Figure 1: The percentage of children aged 12 years and older who were given a second Covid vaccination dose by local authorities in England and Scotland.
Figure 1: Compare the top ten and bottom ten neighbourhoods that have received Covid vaccination doses.
MailOnline’s analysis shows two other areas had uptake of more than 85 per cent, with Yately East in Hampshire having the second highest proportion fully protected (85.5 per cent), followed by Bushey Heath in Hertfordshire (85.3 per cent).
These were followed by Fleet South in Hampshire and Pondtail (84.4%), South Knutsford in Cheshire and Bexton (83.6%) and Frimley Green (83.4%).
Hyson Green in Nottingham was, by contrast, the most popular over-50 booster site after Sparkill. Just 21.1 percent of the population came forward for the third jab.
It was followed by Sparbrook South (21.9 per cent) and Small Health Park (22.9 per cent) — both in Birmingham — and Hockley and Jewellery Quarter in Essex (23.2 per cent).
Data are taken from Office for National Statistics (ONS), population estimates for 2020. These numbers were calculated using population census data from 2011, so there is some uncertainty. Particularly, data from the second and first doses underestimates the number under-50s who live in certain neighbourhoods. This is because students at universities may have been registered at different addresses.
James Lawson from the Adam Smith Institute thoughttank said to MailOnline that he was disappointed once more by the lack of pace in the vaccination campaign and the large regional differences in booster shots given to the most vulnerable.
“There’s a 60-point gap between areas that are most and least vaccinated. Birmingham and Nottingham are particularly affected by the problem.
‘It’s shameful the vaccine campaign has languished given the Government now looks set to rush back to infringements on our most precious liberties — restrictions its own ministers can’t even comply with, undermining the basic fabric of the rule of law.
“Vaccines decrease hospitalisations, deaths, and other complications by about 90 percent. New treatments are available, which significantly reduces the risk from the virus, as well as changing the cost-benefit analysis for restrictions.
Instead of trying to find a expensive and inhumane plan B, governments should make every effort to keep Plan A safe. It is important to accept that Covid can be a problem and that effective vaccines for the weak are better than knee-jerk restraints.
No10 revealed last week it would increase the number of booster jabs to 500,000 per day, and provide a third dose to over-18s in January to combat the coming wave.
Johnson declared last week that the vaccination centres would be sprouting up like Christmas trees. Health Secretary Sajid Javid promised to give the booster programme steroids to counter the Omicron threat.
But ‘Professor Lockdown’ Neil Ferguson today admitted that another nationwide shutdown could be on the cards to tackle the variant as he warned the strain will be dominant before Christmas.
Today, Downing Street stated that no decisions had been made on Plan B. However, there are increasing concerns after 437 British Omicron cases were reported yesterday. There is now a highly-evolved variant in all of the UK’s countries and in most of England.
With less than 330,000 boosters delivered in Britain yesterday, and an average of 380,000 being administered daily, it appears that the scheme is already in serious trouble. The current pace means that all eligible adults are not eligible for boosters until February 10th.
This weekend, there were fewer booster jabs in England than when Mr Johnson and Mr Javid promised to increase the program.
Labour shadow health secretary West Streeting lashed out at No10, saying that they were’stuck on first gear’ during the rollout.
MailOnline was informed by him that while we want the Government succeed, the truth is that they have been in the first gear of the booster rollout.
“Let’s pray they have finally grasped the ropes and that all their promises are fulfilled. Everybody should have the chance to get the jab when they can.
Matthew Lesh (head of research at Adam Smith Institute thinktank) also criticized No10’s slow booster campaign.
He explained that although there were early signs of diminishing immunity, the UK’s health bureaucracy was slow in approving boosters. Now, we’re paying the price.
“The rate of vaccination boosters is currently far too low to provide vaccines for all 18-year-olds before January 31st. The promised increase has yet to materialize.
‘But we know it’s possible to go much faster — with over 600,000 average daily doses achieved earlier this year.’
Mr Lesh asked the Government not to just focus on the NHS, but also involve the private sector as much as possible in the delivery of boosters.
Britons 40 years and older who have had their booster shot 3 months ago may book it starting today.
Updated national booking systems allow those over 40 who are in eligible high-risk groups or individuals with disabilities to make reservations starting today. Two months following their last dose, people will be able book one month ahead.
Officials will invite younger people to reserve their booster in coming weeks as they increase the eligibility for five-year-old age groups.
Plans to increase the speed of the scheme call for Covid to send ‘booster buses’ to Covid stores to provide jabs to holiday shoppers. The mobile clinics, which are staffed by health officials, will allow them to reach their goal of vaccinations reaching 3.5 million per week.
The Health Service makes it easy to obtain the vaccination from pharmacies, churches and shopping centers.
According to a health source, “We understand that people have a busy Christmas season but we believe it’s vital that they receive their vaccine booster as soon as possible.”
“We’ll be providing vaccines in thousands more locations, and we want it to be as simple to obtain a jab to purchase a Christmas gift or turkey.
NHS launches a recruitment drive asking volunteers and paid staff to join its vaccine program.
There are 10,000 open roles, including those for vaccinators and administrative staff.
To increase the number of volunteers, the NHS works with St John and the Royal Voluntary Service.