All adults over 50, the clinically vulnerable and health and social care workers have now been offered a life-saving coronavirus vaccination jab.

The target was reached ahead of schedule, with the government having pledged to offer a first dose to priority cohorts 1-9 by 15 April. Nearly 40 million vaccines have now been given in total, with adults under 50 expected to begin to be invited in the coming days.

The government says that it is on track to offer a first vaccine to all adults by 31 July.

As the government prepares to move into the next phase of the vaccination programme, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “We have now passed another hugely significant milestone in our vaccine programme by offering jabs to everyone in the nine highest risk groups. That means more than 32 million people have been given the precious protection vaccines provide against Covid-19.

“I want to thank everyone involved in the vaccine rollout which has already saved many thousands of lives. We will now move forward with completing essential second doses and making progress towards our target of offering all adults a vaccine by the end of July.”