A COVID-19 vaccine from Oxford University and AstraZeneca has been approved for use in the UK, and will begin to be rolled out in Wales next week.

The jab, which has been described as a “game changer”, was given the green light by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

The UK has ordered 100 million doses of the vaccine – enough to vaccinate 50 million people.

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The Welsh Government has asked people not to call their GP, pharmacy or hospital asking about the vaccine - those eligible for the jab will be invited to a dedicated clinic.

Unlike the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine, the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine is stored at normal vaccine fridge temperatures. This means it will have few storage and transportation issues, making it much easier to use in community settings such as care homes and primary care settings like GP surgeries.

Wales' health minister Vaughan Gething said: “We understand there are high expectations and excitement at the arrival of a second vaccine. However it will take time to reach everyone as this is not an instant fix. We won’t receive all the doses at once and we have to be realistic about the scale and pace of delivery when we are vaccinating the entire adult population.

“We will not see the impact of the vaccine for some months and the pressure on the NHS will continue during this winter. It is essential that we all continue to play our part and do the right thing to protect each other.

“Nobody will be left behind by our NHS. To help the NHS to help you please wait to be invited for your vaccination.”

Senior responsible officer for Wales’ Covid-19 vaccine programme Dr Gillian Richardson said: “The vaccine has been approved as safe and effective by the MHRA, based on the same high standards as applied to all medicines and vaccines.

“It is great news that a second vaccine has met strict standards of safety, quality and effectiveness set out by the MHRA.”

Dr Nicola Williams, director of support and delivery at Health and Care Research Wales, which is nationally co-ordinating research and study-set up in Wales, said: “Our research community is working hard to provide the evidence we need to fight this pandemic and the approval of the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine is an important step forward. We have two further vaccines being tested in Wales right now, with more trials due to be set up in the coming weeks and months.

“This research, alongside the other Covid-19 studies taking place will help us to not only protect the most vulnerable but also to provide the best care possible for those who become ill.

“I’m proud of the role our researchers in Wales have played in this UK-wide effort and I would like to thank the participants too who have volunteered. Together we can make a real difference.”

Vaccine specific training materials will be made available to vaccinators, in accordance with the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine characteristics.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said: “The Government has today accepted the recommendation from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to authorise Oxford University/AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine for use.

“This follows rigorous clinical trials and a thorough analysis of the data by experts at the MHRA, which has concluded that the vaccine has met its strict standards of safety, quality and effectiveness.”

Data published in The Lancet medical journal in early December showed the vaccine was 62 per cent effective in preventing Covid-19 among a group of 4,440 people given two standard doses of the vaccine when compared with 4,455 people given a placebo drug.

Of 1,367 people given a half first dose of the vaccine followed by a full second dose, there was 90 per cent protection against Covid-19 when compared with a control group of 1,374 people.

The overall Lancet data, which was peer-reviewed, set out full results from clinical trials of more than 20,000 people.

Among the people given the placebo drug, 10 were admitted to hospital with coronavirus, including two with severe Covid which resulted in one death.

But among those receiving the vaccine, there were no hospital admissions or severe cases.

The half dose followed by a full dose regime came about as a result of an accidental dosing error.

However, the MHRA was made aware of what happened and clinical trials for the vaccine were allowed to continue.

In an interview with the Sunday Times, AstraZeneca chief executive Pascal Soriot suggested that further data submitted to the regulator showed the vaccine could match the 95 per cent efficacy achieved by the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines.

“We think we have figured out the winning formula and how to get efficacy that, after two doses, is up there with everybody else,” he said.

On Monday, Calum Semple, professor of outbreak medicine at the University of Liverpool and a member of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), described the vaccine as a “game changer” but said it would take until summer to vaccinate enough people for herd immunity – when the virus struggles to circulate.

“To get the wider community herd immunity from vaccination rather than through natural infection will take probably 70 per cent to 80 per cent of the population to be vaccinated, and that, I’m afraid, is going to take us right into the summer, I expect,” he said.