PM makes comments while promoting extension of free winter flu jabs

Boris Johnson, while promoting an expanded programme of flu jabs that ministers hope will ease pressure on the NHS if there is a second wave of coronavirus this winter, has said that people opposed to vaccinations are “nuts.

Visiting a doctors’ surgery in London on Friday, the prime minister said to staff: “There’s all these anti-vaxxers now. They are nuts, they are nuts.”

Johnson added that despite being worried about a second wave of Covid-19, he was confident the UK would be through the crisis by mid-2021.

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The usual winter programme of free flu vaccinations is to be expanded this year to include everyone older than 50 in an attempt to reduce the level of flu infections and prevent the NHS potentially becoming overwhelmed if coronavirus returns more significantly.

Speaking to Sky News at the surgery, Johnson urged people to take part: “We want everybody to get a flu jab in the runup to this winter. And that’s why we’re rolling out the biggest-ever programme of flu immunisation.

“We’re aiming first of all for school children up to year seven, for pregnant women, for people over 65, people who have been shielded. But then we’ll be extending it to people from 50 to 65.

“The reason for doing this is to protect the NHS in the winter months because, obviously, we’ve still got Covid – we’ve still got the threat of a second spike of Covid, and it’s vital therefore to keep that pressure off the NHS by everybody getting a flu jab, and I really hope everybody will.”

The programme would immunise “a very, very significant proportion of the population”, he said.

Last year, around 15 million people in England were vaccinated as part of the NHS campaign, far fewer than the 25 million who were invited to have it. This year more than 30m doses have been ordered.

The vaccine will also be available privately in pharmacies and some supermarkets to adults who are not eligible for an NHS jab. It usually costs around £20.

The PM also suggested that, since obesity is considered a risk factor in COVID-19, new controls on the advertising of junk food, as part of a wider programme to combat obesity, may well be brought into play limiting the advertising of junk food.

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Asked if this summer should be a time for some Britons to lose weight, he said: “The answer is that yes, I’m afraid it should. I’m not normally a believer in nannying, or bossing type of politics. But the reality is that obesity is one of the real comorbidity factors.

“Losing weight is, frankly, one of the ways that you can reduce your own risks from Covid. And actually, it’s one of the ways you can generally improve your health and protect the NHS. So yes, I certainly would encourage people.”

Having linked his own weight to his own bout with Covid-19, Johnson reportedly planned an imminent new anti-obesity campaign .

Asked if he had lost weight, Johnson said: “I’m on the way – I’ve lost about a stone and a bit” Asked how, he replied: “Primarily by eating less, but also by a lot of exercise.”

A stone is a unit of weight equal to 14 pounds averdupois (or international lbs), which is equivalent to 6.35029kg.

Speaking earlier, the care minister, Helen Whately, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that the government would work with GPs to “make sure that the vaccination gets to those who need it”.

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She said: “The important thing here is that we’ve secured the supply of enough vaccine to vaccinate 30 million people. It’s the biggest flu vaccination programme the UK has ever known.

“We’re going to reach over half of the population in England, and it’s really, really important that those who are eligible for the vaccine this year take it up.”

Asked how GPs were supposed to take on the extra workload, Whately said pharmacies would also help: “I would say to GPs now, bear with us.”

She ruled out making the jabs compulsory: “This year, I’m confident that people will realise the importance of getting a flu vaccination, and they’ll realise that this year it really, really is imperative to come forward if you’re eligible and get it, so we expect to see higher take-up rates.”

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