Yorkshire Conservative MPs push for commitment from Matt Hancock to ensure all receive vaccine locally

Health Secretary Matt Hancock faced questions in the Commons yesterday over the vaccine rollout, and he said there is evidence that public enthusiasm for the jab has “risen significantly”.

Government figures show that 2,286,572 people across the UK received the first dose of the jab between December 8 and January 10.

During Health Questions, in response to Labour MP Rachel Hopkins (Luton South), Mr Hancock told the Commons: “The good news is that, over the last month, we’ve seen that the proportion of people who are enthusiastic about taking the vaccine has risen significantly and the proportion of people who are hesitant has fallen.”

Health Secretary Matt Hancock during a visit to the NHS vaccine centre that has been set up in the grounds of the horse racing course at Epsom in Surrey. The centre is one of the seven mass vaccination centres now opened to the general public as the government continues to ramp up the vaccination programme against Covid-19. Photo: PA

But MPs encouraged Mr Hancock to explain how their areas could access vaccinations easily.

Rural rollout is key to vaccine success – The Yorkshire Post says

Colne Valley Conservattive Jason McCartney said: “Thousands of elderly and vulnerable people across Kirklees have already been vaccinated, but some of my constituents are rightly worried that they may have to travel to large vaccination centres in other parts of the country to get their jabs.”

He asked whether all of his constituents would get jabs locally, and pushed for the opening of the new vaccination centre at Huddersfield’s John Smith’s stadium.

While York Outer Tory MP Julian Sturdy asked Mr Hancock to “ensure that smaller GP practices in rural areas are in no way disadvantaged in scheduling their patients for vaccination relative to the larger urban practices”.

And Morley and Outwood Conservative Andrea Jenkyns said: “I have been contacted by a number of my constituents who have concerns about vaccine distribution.

“They are old and vulnerable, some are shielding, and some have no cars and have difficulty using public transport to get their vaccine. There is also a concern that some local GP surgeries are vaccinating only people over 80 with surnames from A to H.”

It comes after The Yorkshire Post and its sister titles called on the Government to utilise all 11,000 of the country’s pharmacies to deliver the jab, and has asked ministers to answer 10 key questions submitted by readers on the roll out.

Mr Hancock said yesterday: “Everybody will be able to get a jab locally. We are committed to ensuring that across England a local vaccination centre will be available within 10 miles of where everyone lives.

“For the vast majority of people—over 95 per cent—this will be a fixed, permanent site. For some of the most rural parts there will be mobile units.”

He added: “Small or large, rural or urban, we need GPs to be vaccinating right across the country, and that is what is happening.”

Labour MP for Halifax Holly Lynch later raised concerns, during questions to the Defence Secretary, over supply of the vaccine.

She said: “The biggest challenge to planning ahead has been the intermittent supply of the vaccines themselves.”

And she sought assurances the military was helping deliver supplies.

Ben Wallace said: “Yes we are and the vaccine delivery, or jabbing actually into people, has increased on a daily basis and is consistently increasing up towards the Prime Minister’s target in the middle of February.”