Delivery of Covid vaccine ‘won’t be disrupted’ as European borders close

Grant Shapps promised the new restrictions on travel into the UK 'won't have an impact on the vaccination programme'.

Delivery of the Covid vaccine will not be disrupted by France temporarily closing its borders to the UK amid fears over a new strain of the virus, the Transport Secretary has said.

Speaking to Sky News this morning, Grant Shapps promised the disruption around the Channel ports in Kent ‘won’t have an impact on the vaccination programme’.

He said: ‘Most vaccine doesn’t come via what is called “Ro-Ro”, roll-on, roll-off, which is what we are talking about here. In other words, it’s not usually accompanied by a driver, by a haulier. It comes on those containers.

‘To put this into context, there are about 6,000 vehicles we would expect, just under in Dover today, probably 4,000 would have gone across from Dover, just under about 2,000 on the Eurotunnel.

‘But there is probably something like 32,000 units that would have been the daily total, so the vast majority – including virtually all the vaccine – actually comes via container and there are good supplies in the meantime. So this won’t have an impact on the vaccination programme.’

France joined Ireland, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Finland, Bulgaria and Denmark in announcing a temporary ban on travel from the UK on Sunday, amid concerns of a new, more contagious, variant of Covid.

Boris Johnson has said the virus mutation, which is thought to be responsible for more than half of new cases in London, could be up to 70% more contagious than previous variants.

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