London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Jan 26, 2026

Covid: Scotland 'in line' with UK's July vaccine target

Covid: Scotland 'in line' with UK's July vaccine target

All adults in Scotland could receive the first dose of the vaccine by the end of July if supply is available, the Scottish government has confirmed.

It said its projected rates were "in line" with Westminster's after the prime minister pledged the new target.

Boris Johnson said this would allow vulnerable people to be protected "sooner" and would help to further ease lockdown rules across the country.

He said he wants the programme to "go further and faster".

The Scottish government said it was expecting to receive revised forecasts of vaccine supply shortly.

Under its current targets everyone aged over 50, unpaid carers and people with underlying health conditions should receive the first dose of the vaccine by early May.

A spokesperson said: "We have not committed to a date for vaccinating all adults due to the uncertainty of supply, but our projected rates remain in line with those announced by the UK government.

"If more supply is available earlier we will ensure this is used to vaccinate as many people as quickly as possible.

"Around 400,000 people are vaccinated each week and if greater supply becomes available we will adapt to use all available vaccines."

It comes after First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said Scotland's vaccination programme was slowing down because of supply problems.

Ms Sturgeon told Holyrood on Tuesday that vaccine manufacturer Pfizer had not reduced the overall number of doses Scotland will get but it had "re-phased" the delivery.


This meant there would slightly less supply than originally expected over the next few weeks, she said.

In the week beginning 8 February, an average of almost 47,000 people per day were given the first dose of the vaccine. That compares with 36,000 the previous week and less than 20,000 in the seven days before that.

So far, almost all care home residents, frontline workers and people aged over 75 have received their vaccine in line with Scottish government targets.

Everyone in the over 65 age group should receive their first jab by early March, and the remainder of those in the priority groups drawn up the Joint Committee of Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) will be vaccinated by early May.

The order of priority for the under 50s has yet to be outlined by the JCVI.

'No let-up'


Prof Adam Finn, a member of the committee, said he expected that a public announcement would be made on vaccine priorities at some point in the next week.

He told BBC Breakfast: "The strategy from JCVI that's being provided as advice to the government is just being finalised at the moment, and then government will make their decision as to how to do this during the coming days, so I think there'll be some kind of public announcement around that in the next week or so."

The Scottish Conservatives urged the Scottish government to be "transparent" about whether they are likely to hit the timescales laid out by the UK prime minister.

"The UK government are confident they will have the supplies and that will have the desired knock-on effect for Scotland," their health spokesman Donald Cameron said.

"At the earliest opportunity, SNP Ministers should be clear whether this hope of vaccinations by the end of July will be given to adults in Scotland.

"There should be no let-up in getting the vaccines into people's arms. That will enable us to ease restrictions on individuals and businesses sooner."

The first minister is expected to publish a route map out of lockdown later this week.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Greenland’s NATO Stress Test: Coercion, Credibility, and the New Arctic Bargaining Game
Diego Garcia and the Chagos Dispute: When Decolonization Collides With Alliance Power
Trump Claims “Total” U.S. Access to Greenland as NATO Weighs Arctic Basing Rights and Deterrence
Air France and KLM Suspend Multiple Middle East Routes as Regional Tensions Disrupt Aviation
U.S. winter storm triggers 13,000-plus flight cancellations and 160,000 power outages
Poland delays euro adoption as Domański cites $1tn economy and zloty advantage
White House: Trump warns Canada of 100% tariff if Carney finalizes China trade deal
PLA opens CMC probe of Zhang Youxia, Liu Zhenli over Xi authority and discipline violations
ICE and DHS immigration raids in Minneapolis: the use-of-force accountability crisis in mass deportation enforcement
UK’s Starmer and Trump Agree on Urgent Need to Bolster Arctic Security
Starmer Breaks Diplomatic Restraint With Firm Rebuke of Trump, Seizing Chance to Advocate for Europe
UK Finance Minister Reeves to Join Starmer on China Visit to Bolster Trade and Economic Ties
Prince Harry Says Sacrifices of NATO Forces in Afghanistan Deserve ‘Respect’ After Trump Remarks
Barron Trump Emerges as Key Remote Witness in UK Assault and Rape Trial
Nigel Farage Attended Davos 2026 Using HP Trust Delegate Pass Linked to Sasan Ghandehari
Gold Jumps More Than 8% in a Week as the Dollar Slides Amid Greenland Tariff Dispute
BlackRock Executive Rick Rieder Emerges as Leading Contender to Succeed Jerome Powell as Fed Chair
Boston Dynamics Atlas humanoid robot and LG CLOiD home robot: the platform lock-in fight to control Physical AI
United States under President Donald Trump completes withdrawal from the World Health Organization: health sovereignty versus global outbreak early-warning access
FBI and U.S. prosecutors vs Ryan Wedding’s transnational cocaine-smuggling network: the fight over witness-killing and cross-border enforcement
Trump Administration’s Iran Military Buildup and Sanctions Campaign Puts Deterrence Credibility on the Line
Apple and OpenAI Chase Screenless AI Wearables as the Post-iPhone Interface Battle Heats Up
Tech Brief: AI Compute, Chips, and Platform Power Moves Driving Today’s Market Narrative
NATO’s Stress Test Under Trump: Alliance Credibility, Burden-Sharing, and the Fight Over Strategic Territory
OpenAI’s Money Problem: Explosive Growth, Even Faster Costs, and a Race to Stay Ahead
Trump Reverses Course and Criticises UK-Mauritius Chagos Islands Agreement
Elizabeth Hurley Tells UK Court of ‘Brutal’ Invasion of Privacy in Phone Hacking Case
UK Bond Yields Climb as Report Fuels Speculation Over Andy Burnham’s Return to Parliament
America’s Venezuela Oil Grip Meets China’s Demand: Market Power, Legal Shockwaves, and the New Rules of Energy Leverage
TikTok’s U.S. Escape Plan: National Security Firewall or Political Theater With a Price Tag?
Trump’s Board of Peace: Breakthrough Diplomacy or a Hostile Takeover of Global Order?
Trump’s Board of Peace: Breakthrough Diplomacy or a Hostile Takeover of Global Order?
The Greenland Gambit: Economic Genius or Political Farce?
The Greenland Gambit: Economic Genius or Political Farce?
The Greenland Gambit: Economic Genius or Political Farce?
Will AI Finally Make Blue-Collar Workers Rich—or Is This Just Elite Tech Spin?
Prince William to Make Official Visit to Saudi Arabia in February
Prince Harry Breaks Down in London Court, Says UK Tabloids Have Made Meghan Markle’s Life ‘Absolute Misery’
Malin + Goetz UK Business Enters Administration, All Stores Close
EU and UK Reject Trump’s Greenland-Linked Tariff Threats and Pledge Unified Response
UK Deepfake Crackdown Puts Intense Pressure on Musk’s Grok AI After Surge in Non-Consensual Explicit Images
Prince Harry Becomes Emotional in London Court, Invokes Memory of Princess Diana in Testimony Against UK Tabloids
UK Inflation Rises Unexpectedly but Interest Rate Cuts Still Seen as Likely
AI vs Work: The Battle Over Who Controls the Future of Labor
Buying an Ally’s Territory: Strategic Genius or Geopolitical Breakdown?
AI Everywhere: Power, Money, War, and the Race to Control the Future
Trump vs the World Order: Disruption Genius or Global Arsonist?
Trump vs the World Order: Disruption Genius or Global Arsonist?
Trump vs the World Order: Disruption Genius or Global Arsonist?
Trump vs the World Order: Disruption Genius or Global Arsonist?
×