​Queen to get COVID vaccine in weeks ​

The Queen will reportedly be receiving the coronavirus vaccine in the coming weeks, and will then reveal the news in order to encourage more people to get the jab.

Senior sources told The Mail on Sunday that both Queen Elizabeth, 94, and Prince Phillip, 99, are set to get the COVID-19 vaccine, and will not receive preferential treatment.

Instead, they will “wait in line” during the first wave of injections, which have been reserved for the over-80s and care home residents.
 

Senior members of the Royal Family will be offered the vaccine at the same time as others in their age group, to avoid any accusations of favouritism.

It is said that both are accepting the offer of the injection on the advice of their doctors.

Public health experts believe that the Queen and Prince Phillip deciding to get the vaccine will be a huge boost for combating misinformation spread by conspiracy theorists online.

Due to this misinformation it is feared that a large proportion of the population will refuse the vaccine.

There are also talks about how Prince Charles and Prince William could play a part in publicising the vaccination program.
 

However, some advisers have reportedly warned that this could be seen as ‘politicising’ the royal family, and could be an invasion of their medical privacy.

Nevertheless, the Queen’s participation with the vaccine is an effort to get the country to rally together.

UK officials have also reportedly discussed getting celebrities such as Sir David Attenborough and Dame Judi Dench to also publicly back the vaccine.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are unlikely to be jabbed until next year when those in their 30s are invited to get the vaccine.
 

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Sources revealed recently that the couple “are keen to support everyone who has been involved”.

William has been following the progress of the upcoming vaccine very closely as it has been developed by a team at Oxford University.

He visited the research laboratory in June and again last month, where he publicly congratulated the team on the news that their vaccine was 90 per cent effective.

The country’s biggest ever mass vaccination program, dubbed Operation Courageous, will kick off on Tuesday, with most of the 50 hospitals that have received the vaccine to start giving injections.

Other GP ‘hubs’ have been told that they will receive doses in the week beginning December 14.