Coronavirus in Scotland: First vaccines to be administered in Scotland will be on Tuesday, December 8

In her afternoon coronavirus briefing today, the First Minister announced that the first round of Covid-19 vaccines will be administered in Scotland on Tuesday, December 8.

Nicola Sturgeon confirms that the vaccine will start being administered in Scotland on Tuesday, December 8.

Ms Sturgeon said: “If we receive the first doses of the vaccine as soon as we are expecting to, and there is no reason at this stage to doubt that, I can confirm to you that the first vaccines against covid will be administered in Scotland on Tuesday, December 8”

She continued to say that ‘today does feel like it may well be the beginning of the end’ but clarified that it doesn’t mean the restrictions and attempts to control the virus will be neglected.

The First Minister added: “I thank people everyday for sticking with this, and I encourage people everyday to keep sticking with it and i’m going to do all of that again today.

"But I do it with a lighter feeling in my heart and a bigger smile on my face today than I’ve been able to muster over these past nine months.

"I really do want to thank everybody for helping us get to this stage where we now have that light shining so brightly at the end of the tunnel.”

The UK has ordered 10 million doses of the vaccine, with Scotland set to receive an initial order of 320,000.

As the vaccine requires two doses, three weeks apart, those vaccinated will not receive protection from the virus until the new year.

It has been shown in trials to be 95 per cent effective and to work in all age groups.

Ms Sturgeon said that while the news wasn’t unexpected, “it is without a shadow of a doubt the best news we have heard since this pandemic started.”

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