Michael Gove says UK will not have to give EU AstraZeneca vaccines to make up shortfall

Minister for Cabinet Office Michael Gove appeared on today’s Good Morning Britain, where he discussed the return to schools, vaccinations and mistakes the Government has made.

Speaking to Susanna Reid and Ben Shephard, he began by revealing how homeschooling is going in his house.

He said: “Well it is a challenge as it is for everyone, but I am very lucky because my son and my daughter, as I think you know, are facing GCSE and A levels this year but they are both at great comprehensive schools that are doing a fantastic job at making sure there is remote learning to help them but we all want to make sure that children are back in the classroom at the earliest possible opportunity.”

Asked why we aren’t vaccinating teachers, he said: “It would be great to be able to vaccinate more and more people in the classroom and on the frontline, we proceed when we are prioritising people for vaccine on the basis on top scientific advice about who should be vaccinated first...there are a list of those who are most vulnerable and we want to make sure that they are protected.”

Asked if they could prioritise teachers once the most vulnerable have been vaccinated and whether that could start around February half-term, he said: “I think that we need to make sure that we do that with the benefit of the best scientific advice because again what we want to do overall is help those that are most of risk and reduce pressure on the NHS...but of course we also want to make sure that teachers and others can have confidence as well…”

Gove was then shown a clip of palliative care physician and author Dr Rachel Clarke talking earlier in the programme. She said she was “absolutely sickened” by the Prime Minister’s comments because they were “patently and obviously a lie”, and also criticised him for telling the nation what is “popular rather than what is right”.

Responding to her comments, Gove replied: “I am full of admiration and thanks for those on the frontline...they are heroes and heroines. As we know from reporting on the frontline...it is a harrowing and extremely difficult task.

“There are lessons to be learnt and we are learning them in real time about how to improve our response.. If we look at other countries as well, we have learnt from them...we have all faced a new virus which has operated in a horrendous way.”

Challenged on whether the Government’s decision to allow mixing at Christmas was a mistake, he said: “My approach has been to concentrate on doing better everyday in those areas where we can improve. In due course we will have an opportunity to look back and to review all of the decisions that were made.

“It is the case that we have improved our response in a number of areas, so the number of people who are being tested has risen dramatically, contact tracing has improved, the vaccine rollout, which GMB has been so fantastic in supporting, has made sure that we have vaccinated more people than other European countries. These are all areas that the Government and those whom we work with have been learning in real time about how to improve."

Asked for his opinion on the row over vaccine supply and whether there is any chance that the UK might lose out on vaccines because the EU hasn’t got enough, he insisted: “No, the programme of vaccination has been agreed and assured and the supplies were fixed some time ago and we will make sure the the vaccine programme will proceed exactly as planned. Of course it is the case that we will want to talk with our friends in Europe to see how we can help but the really important thing is making sure that our own vaccination programme proceeds precisely as planned.”