The Oxford/AZ vaccine gets approved – now ministers need to ensure that it gets out quickly and in a fair manner
This could get very political very quickly
While the United States and the EU continue to deliberate on the Oxford vaccine the big news in the UK is that it has now been approved and that we are told 4 million jabs are ready for distribution.
The expectation is very high amongst many who see the vaccine as a way of managing to move on from the dark days of the lockdown which has been going on since last March into something more like normality.
With the hope of seeing and putting our arms around loved ones in the not too distant future all eyes are going to be on how fast the government can get this out and for people to be vaccinated.
It is vital that this is seen to be done fairly and it would be very dangerous for the government if there is the vaccine equivalent of the Cummings Barnard Castle drive.
There should be no queue jumping and the distribution should be based on clear and obvious rules that people can agree with.
No doubt the Mirror, Mail and others will be looking out for stories that suggest that some individuals or groups are being given special treatment. One problem already is that different regional NHS authorities of the country seem to be handling this with different timetables.
I would suggest that MPs and other politicians wait their turn like everybody else. There was a lot of anger in the US when members of Congress were seen to be getting their vaccine early.