Reduction in Covid-19 vaccine supply expected over coming weeks, First Minister Mark Drakeford says
A planned reduction in coronavirus vaccine supply is expected in Wales in the next few weeks, First Minister Mark Drakeford has said.
Mr Drakeford told a Welsh Parliament committee on Thursday that one of the "challenges" of the Covid-19 vaccination programme in Wales was supply.
He said: "We know that we are going to get less vaccine over the next few weeks than we have over the past few weeks but that was planned for and known for and is accommodated in our plans, which remain to complete the vaccination of those next five priority groups by the spring."
Labour MP Chris Bryant, who represents the Rhondda constituency, said two mass vaccination centres in Wales were closing amid a short-term reduction in vaccine supply.
Speaking to the PA news agency, he claimed the target of vaccinating the first four priority groups will be reached, but then "there will be a hiatus of two or three weeks when the supply of vaccine both Pfizer and Astra Zeneca will be dramatically reduced."
He claimed his local Cwm Taf Morgannwg health board will drop from having 24,000 doses a week of the Astra Zeneca jab to 8,000 doses from Monday.
Mr Bryant said the mass vaccination centre at Merthyr Tydfil closed on Wednesday, while the centre at Ystrad was due to close at "close of play" on Friday.
He said there was expected to be an "uplift" in vaccine supply in Wales from March 1.
It was revealed last month that the UK was set to face short-term delays in delivery of the Pfizer jab as the pharmaceutical company upgraded its production capacity.
Pfizer is upscaling production at its plant in Puurs, Belgium, in efforts to produce more doses than originally planned for 2021 - temporarily reducing deliveries to all European countries.
Shipments of the vaccine to the UK were set to be affected in January, with the US firm saying the overall number of doses due to be delivered between January and March remained the same.
The UK has secured 40 million doses of the vaccine from Pfizer and Germany's BioNTech.
Read more: