Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, within what time frame people will receive their second dose of the covid-19 vaccination.

Having studied evidence on both the Pfizer/BioNTech and Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccines the Joint Committee for Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has advised that we should prioritise giving as many people in at-risk groups their first dose, rather than providing two doses in as short a time as possible.

The National Health Service will prioritise giving the first dose of the vaccine to those in the most high-risk groups. Everyone will still receive their second dose, and this will be within 12 weeks of their first. The second dose completes the course and is important for longer term protection.