• The government has confirmed that more than 20 million people in the UK have had their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccination.
• The aim is to offer all adults a first dose by the end of July.
• NHS England and NHS Improvement says there will be a further acceleration in the programme in the coming weeks.

Responding to confirmation that more than 20 million people in the UK have had their first COVID-19 jab, the chief executive of NHS Providers, Chris Hopson, said:

"It's great news that 20 million people have been vaccinated.

"Every single jab takes us all a step closer to safety.  

"It's a great credit to everyone involved in planning and delivering this huge and complex programme.

"We owe much of this success to trusts, working with colleagues in primary care with the fantastic support of so many volunteers.

"But it's important to remember there's a long way to go - we're not even close to half way through this programme.

"And there's a further challenge, to design a workforce model to enable us to do this year in year out.

"As we set out in our recent briefing, we need to see more progress on vaccines, lower COVID-19 case numbers, much less pressure on the NHS and plans in place to contain future outbreaks before easing restrictions.

"Now is not the time to let down our guard."