ONE of the UK's top medical experts has said he is "confident" life will go back to normal after the coronavirus pandemic.

Professor Chris Whitty said there was no doubt that "we will go back to life as it was before at some point".

However, he added that there was a "reasonable chance" that people will need to be re-vaccinated for coronavirus further down the line.

He also warned that we are "quite a long way" from returning to normal at the moment.

Speaking to BBC Breakfast, England's chief medical officer said: “I am confident we will go back to life as it was before at some point, that’s not in doubt.

“That’s the life we all want to lead.

“And what will happen, once the vaccination has rolled out across a wide enough part of the population, so that the most vulnerable are protected but also so that enough people are protected, to actually reduce the risk for the whole society – that’s going to take a rather long period of time, but months not years.

“We will begin stage by stage; over the next period, people will be able to have the restrictions lifted and it won’t happen in one go.

“And at a certain point, hopefully, we’ll get back to a life that is basically exactly the same as it was before.

“However, we’re quite a long way away from that at the moment."

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Professor Whitty called on people to fully commit to following the coronavirus regulations in the upcoming weeks.

He said: “We really would like people to concentrate on the period now, fully accepting that we all want life to get back to normal and life will get back to normal, but it will actually get back to normal more quickly if we can get on top of this early now.

“If you get invited for a vaccination, please take up that offer.

“And that’s the way you will get on top of this epidemic

“And, by stages, get back to the life that we all want to lead.”

He added that there was a chance coronavirus vaccinations would need to be administered yearly.

He told BBC Radio 5 Live: “I don’t think we’ll have anything on this scale that we’re going to have to do over the next several months but I think there is a reasonable chance that, rather like with flu, we have to vaccinate every year – we may well have to re-vaccinate for Covid."