The UK has become the first country in the world to approve the Covid-19 vaccine from Pfizer and BioNTech, paving the way for vaccination to start next week.
The jab has been shown in studies to be 95 per cent effective and works in all age groups.
The UK has ordered 40 million doses of the vaccine, enough to vaccinate 20 million people.
Around 10 million doses will be available for use in the UK shortly for priority groups, including healthcare workers.
A list of who will receive the vaccine first will be set out later on Wednesday.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) had approved the jab after “months of rigorous clinical trials and a thorough analysis of the data by experts” from the regulator.
He said they have concluded that the vaccine has “met its strict standards of safety, quality and effectiveness”.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock told Sky News the UK was the first country in the world to have a “clinically authorised vaccine”.
He added: “This is fantastic news.
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