Britain on Wednesday said it had approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for use and that it will be rolled out for use from next week.
"The Government has today accepted the recommendation from the Independent Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to approve Pfizer-BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine for use," the government said.
"The vaccine will be made available across the UK from next week."
Britain's vaccine committee will decide which priority groups will get the jab first such as care home residents, health and care staff, the elderly and people who are clinically extremely vulnerable.
The UK has already ordered 40 million doses of the vaccine, according to the BBC, which is enough to vaccinate 20 million people.
It is expected that 10 million doses will be available soon, according to its report.
Pfizer said Britain's emergency-use authorisation marks a historic moment in the fight against COVID-19.
"This authorisation is a goal we have been working toward since we first declared that science will win, and we applaud the MHRA for their ability to conduct a careful assessment and take timely action to help protect the people of the UK," said CEO Albert Bourla.
"As we anticipate further authorisations and approvals, we are focused on moving with the same level of urgency to safely supply a high-quality vaccine around the world."
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the vaccine programme would begin early next week.
"It is very good news," he said.
Despite the upcoming rollout of the vaccine, the British government is still urging residents to abide by restrictions in their area so the virus can be suppressed and its health system can "do its work without being overwhelmed".
The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in November reported over 90 percent effectiveness and said it so far hadn't found any serious safety concerns.
"Today is a great day for science and humanity," Bourla said at the time.
"We are reaching this critical milestone in our vaccine development program at a time when the world needs it most with infection rates setting new records, hospitals nearing over-capacity and economies struggling to reopen."
Reuters / Newshub.
