Minister criticises vaccine rollout as younger people receive jab before the elderly

A Cabinet minister has criticised the Government’s vaccine rollout after finding out some elderly constituents had not been invited to receive the jab, while younger people had.

Therese Coffey, the Work and Pensions Secretary, said her constituents in the Suffolk Coastal area were given the “distressing and annoying” news that some lower-priority individuals would receive vaccines first, as ministers faced accusations of a postcode lottery.

The Government said the discrepancy would only happen when the majority of individuals in their areas in higher priority groups had received jabs.

"I know it is both distressing and annoying when people hear that other cohorts of a lower priority (according to the JCVI) are being vaccinated ahead of our oldest and most vulnerable,” Ms Coffey wrote on Facebook, admitting: “Something is not quite working right yet.”

Asked Ms Coffey’s apparent criticism of the Government, Boris Johnson said the pace of the rollout was “encouraging”.

“I think actually the whole of the UK is going very well”, he said.

Nadhim Zahawi, the vaccines minister, said the over-70s would not be invited for jabs until more than 90 per cent of the over-80s in their areas are vaccinated.

Ms Coffey later added that she had been assured "that a letter/text will be issued today to anyone aged over 80 who had not yet been contacted".

A Government spokesman said the decision to vaccinate lower-priority groups had been taken “to meet our commitment to offer vaccinations to the first four priority groups by the middle of February”.