UPDATE 1-Second vaccine clears path out of pandemic by Spring - UK's Hancock

(Adds quotes)

LONDON, Dec 30 (Reuters) - The Oxford University-AstraZeneca
COVID-19 vaccine approved by Britain on Wednesday provides a
path out of the pandemic by the spring, by which time millions
of vulnerable people will be protected, Health Secretary Matt
Hancock said.

"The NHS will be able to deliver these shots into people's
arms at the speed at which it can be manufactured," he told Sky
News.

"I am also now, with this approval this morning, highly
confident that we can get enough vulnerable people vaccinated by
the spring that we can now see our route out of this pandemic."

He said the recommended 12-week gap between the first and
second doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca shot was "very helpful"
because it enabled more people to be immunized with a first shot
that offered a high level of protection on its own.

(Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by Guy Faulconbridge)