[Source: BBC]

A single shot of either the Oxford-AstraZeneca or the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID jab reduces the chance of needing hospital treatment by more than 80%, an analysis in England shows.

The Public Health England data showed the effect kicked in three to four weeks after vaccination.

It was based on people aged over 80 who were the first to receive the jab.

Government scientists hailed the result but stressed that two doses were needed for the best protection.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock told a Downing Street briefing on Monday the latest vaccine results were “very strong”.

More than 20 million people in the UK have had their first dose of a vaccine – over a third of the adult population.