Northamptonshire residents who refuse coronavirus vaccine are endangering those around them

Northamptonshire public health officials have warned those who refuse to have the coronavirus vaccine are endangering not only themselves but also those around them.

While the majority of people offered the jab have accepted, a low proportion of those choose not to, Northamptonshire County Council's director for public health Lucy Wightman said.

Kettering General Hospital chief executive Eileen Doyle said refusals are a concern with many unfounded myths about the vaccine doing the rounds.

She said some of the myths she had heard about the vaccine included it containing meat and alcohol as well as it affecting fertility - all of which is nonsense.

"Everybody has a right to refuse, of course they do, and if I wanted to refuse, it's not just about my personal safety, it's about the personal safety of my loved ones and people I come in contact with," she told a press conference yesterday (Friday, January 22).

"We do know that it is an issue and it is a big concern, particularly if you are a frontline worker.

"So we are encouraging because maybe it's out of fear or all sorts of things, we're trying to dispel myths and just encourage people to have the vaccine.

"But we are conscious that there is a group of people for whom either it doesn't exist or it's a hoax or think it will be bad for me, actually getting Covid and not surviving it is bad for you.

"So the messages just remain the same: be sensible and take what's offered."

So far, 54,562 people have received their first doses of the vaccine in Northamptonshire, which is among the highest in the country.

Plus just over 78 per cent of those aged over 80 have been inoculated to date, which is the second-best rate in England to Gloucestershire.

Those waiting to receive the vaccine are urged to remain patient and they will be contacted as soon as possible.