Following Vaccines Minister Nadhim Zahawi’s announcement that all children aged 12- to 15-years-old will be offered a first dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, roll-out has started in England.

The roll-out comes following advice from the four UK chief medical officers as well as the recommendation of the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI).

The government is preparing to deliver a schools-based vaccination programme, a ‘successful model’ which has been used for vaccination including HPV and Diphtheria, Tetanus and Polio (DTP). It will also be supported by GPs and community pharmacies, with invitations to begin from next week.

“I have accepted the recommendation from the Chief Medical Officers to expand vaccination to those aged 12 to 15 – protecting young people from catching COVID-19, reducing transmission in schools and keeping pupils in the classroom,” said Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid.

“I am very grateful for the expert advice I have received from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation and UK Chief Medical Officers.

“Our outstanding NHS stands ready to move forward with rolling out the vaccine to this group with the same sense of urgency we’ve had at every point in our vaccination programme,” he added.

The UK government has terminated its supply agreement with French firm Valneva for its COVID-19 vaccine candidate VLA2001.

According to Valneva, the UK government has alleged that the company breached its obligations under the agreement, which it ‘strenuously’ denies.

Previously, the UK government had ordered 60 million doses of VLA2001, with another deal penned in February taking the total ordered to 100 million doses.

On top of this, the UK government also retained options for a further 90 million doses of VLA2001 for supply between 2023 and 2025.

As part of the Valneva deal, the UK government was set to expand the firm’s Scottish facility in Livingston.

“This is a blow for the facility in Livingston. We are very keen and will be reaching out to the company to try to get security and secure a future for that facility in Livingston; we hope that would be with Valneva,” Humza Yousaf, Scotland’s health secretary, told BBC Good Morning Scotland.

“Clearly, when it comes to their supposed alleged failure to meet their contract obligations, we obviously are looking for more information from the UK government and would expect that shortly,” he added.

VLA2001 is currently in Phase III clinical testing, with results expected early in the fourth quarter. These results will form part of the company’s rolling submission for condition approval of the vaccine with the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

The government has launched a six week consultation to consider mandatory COVID-19 vaccination for frontline staff working in health and care settings, the Department of Health and Social Care announced today.

The consultation will consider if requirements should apply for health and wider social care staff – i.e. those who work in contact with patients and people receiving care.

This would mean that only fully vaccinated staff – unless medically exempt – could be deployed to deliver health and care services.

The consultation will also ask for views on whether flu vaccines should be a requirement for health and care staff.

In a statement, the DHSC said the proposals are being considered in a bid to protect vulnerable patients and staff.

“Many patients being treated in hospitals and other clinical settings are most at risk of suffering serious consequences of COVID-19, and we must do what we can to protect them,” said Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid.

“It’s so clear to see the impact vaccines have against respiratory viruses which can be fatal to the vulnerable, and that’s why we’re exploring mandatory vaccines for both COVID-19 and flu.

“We will consider the responses to the consultation carefully but, whatever happens, I urge the small minority of NHS staff who have not yet been jabbed to consider getting vaccinated – for their own health as well as those around them,” he added.

Individuals working in care homes regulated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) already now need to be fully vaccination as a condition of deployment, following a recent government consultation.

The UK has secured supply of Ronapreve, a new COVID-19 therapeutic developed by Regeneron and Roche that combines two monoclonal antibodies – casirivimab and imdevimab.

The drug is administered either by injection or infusion, acting at the lining of the respiratory system where it binds to the SARS-CoV-2 virus and prevents it from gaining access to cells.

Initially, Ronapreve will be targeted at hospitalised patients who have not mounted an antibody response against COVID-19.

This includes individuals who are immunocompromised, such as patients with certain cancer or autoimmune diseases.

Antibody testing will be used to determine whether patients are seronegative, with the treatment then to be administered following this.

In a statement, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said the government has secured supply of Ronapreve for NHS patients across the four nations.

“We have secured a brand new treatment for our most vulnerable patients in hospitals across the UK and I am thrilled it will be saving lives from as early as next week,” said Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid.

“The UK is leading the world in identifying and rolling out life-saving medicines, particularly for COVID-19, and we will continue our vital work to find the best treatments available to save lives and protect the NHS,” he added.