The creator of the Oxford vaccine said that the new variant of Covid will be more lethal and that the pandemic is far from over.
The scientist said that coronavirus had killed over five million people so far, and it is expected to claim more lives if no measures are taken.
Prof Dame Sarah Gilbert said that the highly mutated Omicron tells us that the pandemic is
not over with us and that the next mutation might even be more lethal.
The UK Health Security Agency reported 86 news Omicron cases, making the total
confirmed cases of the new variant 246. It indicates that the new travel restrictions
imposed by the government will not likely be sufficient to stop the spread.
However, scientists said that while new lethal variants are approaching, we must not
succumb to our fight with the virus and that research fighting against Covid must not be lost.
Gilbert, a professor of vaccinology at the University of Oxford, said: “We cannot allow a
situation where we have gone through all we have gone through, and then find that the
enormous economic losses we have sustained mean that there is still no funding for pandemic preparedness.”
“Just as we invest in armed forces and intelligence and diplomacy to defend against wars,
we must invest in people, research, manufacturing and institutions to defend against pandemics.”
During the initial vaccine rollout, the number of vaccinations peaked at 602,265 a day on average. In contrast, the current total number of vaccines now being delivered a day on average is 435,542, over a quarter less than in March.
Separately, millions of people are being urged to get a flu jab by Friday to maximise
protection over Christmas, as figures reveal more than half of all those who are pregnant
or have underlying health conditions have still not been vaccinated. The UKHSA is
encouraging eligible people to have the vaccine by 10 December to allow it take full effect before the festive season.
