Bedford council welcomes roll out of Covid-19 vaccine - but urges people to stick to the rules

Bedford Borough Council has welcomed the roll out of the Covid-19 vaccine but warned we must all continue to follow existing guidelines to reduce the spread of the virus.

The first wave of doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine have been administered with people aged over 80, health and social care staff eligible to receive it. Initially the vaccine is being administered in hospitals before being rolled out to community settings.

But the council said that while the vaccination process will take many months, everyone must continue to follow 'Hands, Face, Space’ advice and limit their contact with others.

Dave Hodgson, Bedford mayor, said: “The roll out of this vaccine, following safety approval by the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Authority (MHRA), is fantastic news in the fight against Covid-19.

"Vaccines are our best defence against the virus and are essential if we want to get back to normal and meet with our friends and family like we used to.

"We will be working with our colleagues in the NHS as they roll out the vaccine locally. It’s important that priority groups, the vulnerable and the people who look after them are protected first, so it will be some time before the vaccine reaches the majority of the population.”

Cllr Louise Jackson, health and wellbeing portfolio holder, added: “While the vaccine is being rolled out it’s vital that we all continue to follow the advice about the action we must all take to stop the virus spreading.

"We’ve all made huge sacrifices over the last year to protect each other, we can’t let that all be wasted now.

"Please continue to wash your hands regularly and for 20 seconds, wear a face covering where you can, keep two metres distance from those you don’t live with and limit your contact with others outside your household.”