PEOPLE across England could soon be offered a third dose of the Covid vaccine as the Health Secretary has today said there are plans for a booster jab.

This morning, Matt Hancock confirmed the Government is working on a booster programme, with the full plans set to be revealed in Autumn.

Speaking to BBC Breakfast, Mr Hancock said that second jabs offer very strong protection but said there is further protection from a third dose.

He said: "There is more protection still that we think that you can get from a booster jab and we’re currently trialling which combinations of jabs are the most effective.

“When we know the results of that, then we will set out the full plans for the booster programme over the autumn."

Mr Hancock said the Government should have clinical data on a third dose of the Covid jab in the next few weeks.

He said: “We’ve got to make sure we get the logistics right; for instance, GPs have been so heavily involved in this vaccination effort.

"But GPs have also got to do their day job, so that’s something we’re working hard on now, and, in the next few weeks, when we get the clinical data through on what’s the most effective combinations to have - then we’ll set out all the details of the booster programme for the autumn.”

Professor Anthony Harnden, deputy chairman of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, suggested there would be a need for planning within the NHS to dtermine who would get a booster jab first.

He told the BBC: “The most key question is how long do these vaccines last? ie. what is the duration of protection? Whether we can mix vaccine schedules is important and the Government have commissioned a study which will be reporting on mixing the schedules of seven different vaccines – AstraZeneca; Pfizer; Moderna; Novavax; Janssen; CuraVac and Valneva.

“We need to think about various vaccines and we need to think about age groups, and we need to think about mixing with flu vaccines and there is a study ongoing at the moment of combining the flu with a Covid vaccine.

“One of the key things is that these vaccines have been incredibly successful and I think that if we can get two doses into the majority of the adult population, then we’ll be in a really good place, but we may not be so with flu, and flu is going to be really important this winter to get vaccinated against.

“In terms of any booster campaign, we need to think about who this will target. Those that received the vaccine furthest away – when we started in December last year and January – were the very elderly and vulnerable, and, of course, it will be many months since they’d have their vaccine, so we do need to think about whether we need to boost those particular age groups.”

Asked how soon the information would become available, he said: “It will be data-driven but we’re very conscious of the need for programme planning. So, it’s a balance between making a decision based on the best available