British Queen urges COVID-19 vaccine doubters to 'think about other people'

LONDON-- British Queen Elizabeth II on Friday urged those who are hesitant to take the coronavirus vaccine jab to "think about other people".

The Queen, 94, who had the jab in January, made the remarks during a video call with health leaders delivering the coronavirus vaccine across Britain.

"Once you've had the vaccine you have a feeling of, you know, you're protected, which is, I think, very important," she said.

"As far as I could make out it was quite harmless. It was very quick, and I've had lots of letters from people who have been very surprised by how easy it was to get the vaccine. And the jab -- it didn't hurt at all," she added.

The Queen's remarks came after research showed that certain communities in Britain, especially some black and ethnic minority groups, reportedly remain hesitant to take the vaccine.

"I think the other thing is, that it is obviously difficult for people if they've never had a vaccine... But they ought to think about other people rather than themselves," she said.

Another 9,985 people in Britain have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 4,154,562, according to official figures released Thursday.

The country also reported another 323 coronavirus-related deaths. The total number of coronavirus-related deaths in Britain stood at 122,070. These figures only include the deaths of people who died within 28 days of their first positive test.

The latest figures were revealed as more than 18.6 million people in Britain have been given the first jab of the coronavirus vaccine.

England is currently under the third national lockdown since outbreak of the pandemic in the country. Similar restriction measures are also in place in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

On Monday, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced his long-anticipated "roadmap" exiting the lockdown.

Schools in England will reopen from March 8 as first part of the four-step plan, which Johnson said was designed to be "cautious but irreversible".

Johnson said he is "very optimistic" that all coronavirus restrictions in England will be removed by June 21.

To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Germany, Russia and the United States have been racing against time to roll out coronavirus vaccines.