NEARLY three-quarters of over-50s have taken-up the autumn Covid-19 booster in Northumberland – two years after the first Covid jab was administered to an English NHS patient.

Thursday, December 8 marked two years to the day that 90-year-old Margaret Keenan became the first person in the world to receive the Pfizer jab, kickstarting a word-wide rollout of the historic vaccine.

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Since then, approximately 257,800 people in Northumberland have been fully vaccinated having received the first and second injection, figures from the UK coronavirus dashboard show.

This means that as of November 30, at least 86.8 per cent of people aged 12 and over in the area have had the first two jabs, based on the number of people on the National Immunisation Management Service.

A further 220,100 have received a booster or third dose, with uptake for the third jab standing at 74.1 per cent at the end of November.

Steve Russell, NHS director of vaccinations and screening, said that Covid-19, flu and other respiratory viruses are 'still very much with us', and urged eligible people to get their autumn booster to 'ensure maximum protection' through the festive period.

Further data, which details uptake among people aged 50 and over, shows 116,100 Northumberland residents had received the autumn booster by November 30.

It means at least 72.1 per cent of over 50s have gotten the additional dose – above England's overall rate of 61.9 per cent.

Nationally, 42 million people are fully vaccinated (75.2 per cent) while 33.4 million have received a booster or third dose (59.8 per cent).

So far, more than 16 million people have been administered the autumn booster, including 14.4 million over 50s.

Mr Russell added: "It has been two years since the NHS in England delivered the world’s first Covid jab outside of clinical trials, and thanks to NHS staff and volunteers, more than 143 million doses have been administered across the country providing life-saving protection and allowing us to get back to a pre-pandemic way of life."

Health Minister Maria Caulfield said the roll out of the vaccine over the past two years has been a 'phenomonal feat'.

"The power of the Covid vaccine is undeniable – since the UK was the first country to administer a jab outside of a clinical trial, countless lives have been saved across the world thanks to the incredible work of researchers, scientists, doctors, nurses and volunteers."

However, she added that 'we can’t be complacent'.

"That's why it's crucial that all those eligible, from those at risk and pregnant women to frontline health and social care workers, book their appointments as soon as possible to keep immunity levels high," she said.