Commenting on the roll out of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, NHS Providers chief executive Chris Hopson said:

"We're delighted to see NHS hospital trusts administering the first doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine to patients this morning. This provides an important further leap ahead on the path out of a very difficult period for the whole country.

"NHS trusts will now go hell for leather to vaccinate as many people as possible, as quickly as possible, because they know how important this vaccination campaign is.

"They are mystified and frustrated at a national newspaper story this morning suggesting that the NHS is unwilling to commit to as rapid a rollout of COVID-19 vaccinations as possible.

"The NHS knew this was coming and has been preparing well for it. NHS trusts have already vaccinated a million people in less than a month. The main constraint at the moment is supply of vaccine doses and trusts are confident they can quickly deliver all the doses that are made available to them.

"There is a huge task and there will, inevitably, be logistical challenges to meet. But, today of all days, this is a time to celebrate the light at the end of the tunnel rather than make those challenges seem bigger than they really are."