Boris Johnson promises to ‘throw everything at’ booster jabs expansion

Boris Johnson has vowed to “throw everything at” efforts to increase the booster jabs roll out.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson during a media briefing in Downing Street, London, on coronavirus (Covid-19). Picture date: Tuesday November 30, 2021.

Speaking at a Downing Street press conference, the Prime Minister revealed at least 400 military personnel will help the NHS and volunteers deliver jabs, with centres “popping up like Christmas trees”.

Mr Johnson explained everyone eligible for a coronavirus booster jab will be offered one by the end of January as part of "another great British vaccination effort".

He said: “We’ve already done almost 18 million boosters across the UK but we’ve got millions more to do to protect the most vulnerable.

“Then we’ll move down the cohorts rapidly, and working together with the devolved administrations we want to ramp up capacity across the whole United Kingdom to the levels we achieved in the previous vaccination effort.

“We’re going to be throwing everything at it in order to ensure that everyone eligible is offered that booster, as I say, in just over two months.”

Health Secretary Sajid Javid said the booster programme would be put “on steroids” to meet the target.

The need for action was underlined as the number of confirmed cases of the Omicron variant in the UK reached 22, with that figure expected to increase further.

Mr Johnson also insisted the UK Government would not keep additional restrictions in place any longer than necessary.

He said: “The measures that we have put in place will not last a minute more than we think they are strictly necessary for the protection of public health.”

Mr Johnson also claimed the Government does not want people to cancel Christmas parties or nativity plays.

He said: “We don’t want people to cancel such events. We think that overwhelmingly the best thing for kids is to be in school, as I’ve said many times throughout this pandemic.

“What we are doing is trying to take a balanced and proportionate approach to the particular risk that seems to be posed by Omicron, or certainly is posed by Omicron, focused in particular on measures at the borders.

“And we think that’s the right way to go for the time being, until we know more and until we can get more boosters, as we’ve been saying, into people’s arms.”