A coronavirus vaccine trialled in Southampton and developed in the UK can prevent at least 70.4% of people from getting Covid-19, according to new data.

AstraZeneca and Oxford University announced that their jab is effective in preventing many people getting ill and it has been shown to work in different age groups, including the elderly.

But one of the dosing patterns used by the scientists suggested 90% effectiveness if one half dose is given followed by a further full dose.

Daily Echo: PAPA

Another dosing pattern showed showed 62% efficacy when one full dose is given followed by another full dose.

The combined analysis from both dosing regimens resulted in an average efficacy of 70.4%.

Professor Andrew Pollard, chief investigator of the Oxford Vaccine Trial at Oxford, said: “These  findings show that we have an effective vaccine that will save many lives.

“Excitingly, we’ve found that one of our dosing regimens may be around 90% effective and, if this dosing regime is used, more people could be vaccinated with planned vaccine supply.”

Business Secretary Alok Sharma tweeted: “Very promising data from the Oxford/AstraZeneca Phase III clinical trials.

“We are on the cusp of a huge scientific breakthrough that could protect millions of lives.

“The UK has secured early access to 100m doses of their vaccine – on top of 255m doses from other developers.”

Pascal Soriot, chief executive officer at AstraZeneca, said the news is an “important milestone” in the fight against the pandemic.

He added: “This vaccine’s efficacy and safety confirm that it will be highly effective against Covid-19 and will have an immediate impact on this public health emergency.

“Furthermore, the vaccine’s simple supply chain and our no-profit pledge and commitment to broad, equitable and timely access means it will be affordable and globally available, supplying hundreds of millions of doses on approval.”