Boris Johnson has revealed Covid booster jabs for adults will be “going ahead”.
Speaking to broadcasters on Monday, the prime minister unexpectedly said offering a third jab to some people had “already been approved”.
Johnson said booster vaccinations, designed to fend off a another wave of the illness, would be a “good thing”.
He also urged the “10% or so” who still have not had a single jab to “please go and get one”.
“Don’t forget that the vast majority of people who are suffering seriously from Covid are unvaccinated,” he said.
“Very sadly, people who are still succumbing to Covid, dying from Covid, are the unvaccinated, so please go and get your jab.”
Johnson is due to hold a press conference on Tuesday afternoon where he is expected to set out his plan for how to deal with Covid this winter.
It comes as the UK’s chief medical officers are reviewing the wider benefits of vaccinating 12 to 15-year-olds, such as minimising school absences.
The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) declined to recommend a widespread rollout to the age group on health grounds alone.
Earlier on Tuesday, Neil Ferguson, a member of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), said that children should be offered the jab to prevent a winter wave of cases.
No.10 also said today another lockdown over winter would only be considered as a “last resort”.