More than 20 million people in the UK have been given at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, the country's Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced on Sunday evening. Government figures revealed that 20,089,551 people from a population of some 66 million had been administered a jab.

The UK has been ahead of other countries in Europe in vaccinating its population by extending the waiting time between the two doses up to three months so that more people can be partially vaccinated quicker.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson called the milestone a "huge national achievement” and thanked NHS staff for their "tireless work.”

The British government is aiming to give the entire adult population at least one dose of vaccine by the end of July. The island country has the highest death toll in Europe and has been ravaged by the more virulent variant first detected there, but infections and hospitalizations have fallen dramatically in recent weeks.

The Telegraph newspaper reported on Sunday that people aged over 40 would start to be vaccinated in March, that is Monday