Mansfield MP says ramping up of Covid vaccine roll out gives everyone hope

We’ve reached a pivotal point where we now have three approved vaccines and have already vaccinated more than 1.5 million people, more than the whole of Europe put together.

There are more than 730 vaccination sites already up and running and we have started the process of protecting the most vulnerable and saving thousands of lives.

Last week, some GP sites started rolling out the vaccine and by the end of this week there will be more than ,1000 GP-led sites, 223 hospital sites, seven giant vaccination centres and a first wave of 200 pharmacies allowing us to deliver hundreds of thousands of vaccinations a day.

We are working up to vaccinating everyone in the top four priority groups by mid February, protecting those at highest risk and removing the pressure on the NHS.

We will begin to utilise the expertise of the armed forces, drawing on their extensive and logistical experience, working alongside the NHS to deliver vaccines as soon as possible and making sure resources are allocated to where they are needed most.

This will really help with the roll out, so the most vulnerable in our community can get the vaccine as soon as possible.

Last week the Prime Minister also announced that new lifesaving treatments for coronavirus have passed rigorous clinical trials and they will be available through the NHS immediately, helping to potentially save thousands of lives.

Tocilizumab and Sarilumab, when added to the treatments we have already, will play a significant role in defeating the virus.

They have been found to reduce the risk of death for critically ill patients by almost a quarter and have cut time spent in intensive care.

This is a huge advancement in the care of people who have been severely affected by this horrible illness.

With the vaccination programme being rolled out and this new treatment, I think we can be cautiously optimistic about the future, but for now we need to keep to the guidelines, stay at home and protect our NHS.

Ben Bradley is MP for Mansfield.