Bolton could have been better protected from Covid surge, local leaders claim
Bolton now has the highest case rate of any local authority in England but some councillors say the situation could have been avoided
21 May 2021 • 12:34pm
Some officials have accused the Bolton population of vaccine hesitancy while others say early warnings of inadequate vaccination facilities and capacity went unheeded
Credit: Simon Townsley
Local leaders in Bolton say the area “could have been better protected” from the Indian variant if their concerns over vaccination coverage had been heeded sooner.
Local councillors said they raised concerns over a lack of vaccine provision for some of the worst affected wards as early as February.
Bolton now a vaccination hotspot but fears over Indian Covid variant continue to grow
Long queues form at mobile and pop-up vaccination centres as GPs urge people in Lancashire town to attend regardless of age
18 May 2021 • 7:00pm
Thousands of people in Bolton have received Covid vaccinations after warnings that the Indian variant of the virus is driving a steep rise in infections in the Lancashire town.
Long queues formed at mobile and pop-up vaccination centres, with local GPs urging people to attend regardless of their age as fears grew over the spread of the mutation.
A vaccination bus at the Essa Academy, one of a number of pop-up units in Bolton, issued 3,072 vaccines on Sunday alone – thought to be the largest daily number given at any centre in the country since the start of the vaccines programme.
They haven’t had a crowd like this all year here at Bolton Wanderers Football Club. It might only a be a few punters every few minutes but it’s several hundred every day and that’s more than the Trotters have enjoyed this season. There’s room for plenty more, too.
Because while Bolton might be leading the nation in cases of Covid-19 caused by the ‘Indian variant’, this town is also vaccinating the local population faster than you can say Nat Lofthouse.
If you want a Covid vaccination (it’s mainly the Pfizer jab hereabouts) and have some sort of reason, you are likely to get it. I meet 17-year-old Lauren who is not actually from Bolton but a student in Manchester.
Matt Hancock today defended the timing of travel restrictions on India amid criticism of red list delay
Critics have warned that tougher action should have been taken sooner against India amid variant concerns
PHE data shows 4.8 per cent of 3,345 people landing from India between March 25 and April 7 tested positive
Labour chairwoman of Home Affairs Select Committee Yvette Cooper called for a slow down in easing