Over seven million Covid-19 vaccine doses administered in North East and Yorkshire

Over 4.6 million people across the region have received at least one jab and more than 2.3 million people have received both doses, ensuring they have the strongest possible protection with a second dose.

Across the UK, over 35.3 million people have now been vaccinated with a first dose, while more than 17.6 million people have had both doses.

Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock said: “This milestone is an exceptional achievement and testament to the tireless efforts and dedication of the local NHS teams in the North East and Yorkshire who are doing everything they can to protect the most vulnerable people from this awful disease.

“Behind these numbers are lives saved and people across the region are doing themselves proud by coming forward in such numbers to get their jabs.

“The job is not done yet and I urge everyone eligible to get their appointment booked for the vaccine as soon as possible - it will protect your loved ones and it could save your life.”

Vaccines Minister, Nadhim Zahawi said: “This is a phenomenal achievement from everyone who lives in the North East and Yorkshire and is a credit to the army of volunteers, the local authorities and the NHS teams who are helping jab the way back to normal life.

“We have one of the highest uptake rates in the world and it’s thanks to incredible achievements like these that we are on track to offer a jab to all adults by the end of July.

“I encourage everyone who is eligible to come forward for the jab, it’s quick, painless and could save your life.”

Data from Public Health England’s real-world study shows the vaccines are already having a significant impact in the UK, reducing hospitalisations and deaths, saving more than 10,000 lives in England by the end of March.

Meanwhile data from the ONS and Oxford University shows that COVID-19 infections fell significantly by 65 per cent after the first dose of the Oxford/AstraZeneca or Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines, rising further after the second dose.

ONS data published on May 6 also found that more than nine in 10 (93 per cent) adults reported positive sentiment towards the vaccine.

This comes as the UK recorded two deaths within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 as of Sunday, bringing the UK total to 127,605.

Separate figures published by the UK’s statistics agencies show there have been 152,000 deaths registered in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate.

The Government also said that, as of 9am on Sunday, there had been a further 1,770 lab-confirmed cases in the UK.

It brings the total to 4,434,860.

All vaccines being used in the UK have met the independent Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s strict standards of safety, effectiveness and quality.

Rolling reviews are underway by the MHRA to assess the Janssen and Novavax vaccines.