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By Andrew MacAskill
LONDON, March 19 (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Boris
Johnson received his first dose of the AstraZeneca
COVID-19 vaccine on Friday and urged the public to do the same,
saying "he did not feel a thing."
Johnson, 56, received his vaccine at the same hospital where
almost a year ago he was put in an intensive care unit and given
oxygen via a tube in his nose after he contracted the virus and
fell seriously ill. He later said he was so sick that plans were
drawn up on how to announce his death.
"I literally did not feel a thing. It was very good, very
quick," Johnson said after receiving the injection at St Thomas'
Hospital in London.
"I cannot recommend it too highly, everybody when you do get
your notification to go for a jab, please go and get it, it is
the best thing for you, best thing for your family and for
everyone else."
Pictures showed the prime minister wearing a black mask, a
shirt and tie with his sleeve rolled up while a nurse gives him
the vaccine.
Britain broke its record for the most coronavirus shots
given out in one day on Friday and almost half of all adults
have received one dose, making it one of the fastest countries
in the world to roll out a vaccine programme.
This success has helped the ruling Conservatives regain the
lead over the main opposition Labour Party in opinion polls
after the prime minister last year was accused of acting too
slowly to stop the spread of the virus.
Johnson received his vaccine as European countries on Friday
resumed using the AstraZeneca shot after regulators said its
benefits outweighed any risks following recent reports of blood
clots.
Countries including Germany and France reversed their
decision to temporarily pause its use after reports of about 30
cases of rare brain blood clots sent scientists and governments
scrambling to determine any link.
The AstraZeneca vaccine, developed by scientists at the
University of Oxford, has also been at the centre of tensions
between Britain and the European Union, after Brussels expressed
anger over the lack of deliveries of the shot coming from
Britain.
(Reporting by Andrew MacAskill; Editing by Kate Holton and
Raissa Kasolowsky)
