Covid: What are the vaccine rules for NHS staff and can I get a booster?

Frontline NHS staff in England will have to be fully vaccinated against Covid, the government has announced.

It comes as more people are being encouraged to get a booster jab ahead of winter.

A deadline of April is being set, to give unvaccinated NHS staff time to get both doses.

There will be exemptions for medical reasons and for those who don't have face-to-face contact with patients.

The announcement only applies to England - other UK nations have not made similar proposals. The Welsh government says it doesn't see the need for compulsory vaccinations, given its high take-up rates.

Health Secretary Sajid Javid said 93% of NHS staff in England had had their first dose, and 90% were fully vaccinated. This is higher than the general working-age population, where about 81% have had both doses.

But it still leaves 103,000 workers unvaccinated, Mr Javid told MPs.

There are wide variations between areas - about 95% of staff at Dorset County hospital are fully vaccinated, compared with 80% at Bedford Hospital and Luton and Dunstable University Hospital.

Care home staff in England have until Thursday to get vaccinated (unless they have a medical exemption).

Again, this does not apply in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Vaccination is not compulsory for other people in the UK, although Scotland and Wales require Covid passports to enter some venues and events.

A booster is an extra dose of Covid vaccine, which helps people who have already been double-jabbed retain their immunity.

In England, you can now make an advance booking for your booster five months (152 days) after your second dose.

You can get the booster itself six months (182 days) since your second dose, either by appointment or at an NHS walk-in centre.

Appointments for a third jab are still needed in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Rules about whether you're eligible for a booster are the same throughout the UK:

The booster will usually be either Pfizer or Moderna - it does not matter if you originally received a different vaccine.

About 50 million people aged over 12 in the UK have now had at least one dose of Covid vaccine. More than 45 million have had a second dose.

More than 10.3 million people have now had a third jab. As well as boosters, some people with severely suppressed immune systems are being given a third primary jab as part of their basic vaccination - they may also be offered a booster at a later date.

All 12 to 15-year-olds in the UK are being offered a single Pfizer Covid jab.

In Scotland, as well as being invited to book an appointment at a clinic, 12- to 15-year-olds can get vaccinated at drop-in centres.

Teenagers in England can now have their jab at school, or a vaccination centre.

Appointments must be booked in advance online, once the child's parents have received a letter seeking their permission. Children will have to consent again at the time of the jab.

Vaccination centres are also being used in Wales, with different arrangements in place between areas.

Jabs in Northern Ireland are expected to roll out through schools during November.

Young people aged 16 and 17 are also being offered one dose, but with the intention of a second at a later date.

There is no vaccine currently approved for under-12s in the UK.

People who are under 40 or pregnant are being offered Pfizer or Moderna rather than Oxford-AstraZeneca, because of a possible connection with extremely rare cases of blood clots.

Under-18s are currently being offered Pfizer, although the Moderna vaccine has also been authorised for use in children.

The most common ones include a sore arm, headache, chills, fatigue and nausea.

They are part of the body's normal immune response to vaccines and tend to resolve within a day or two.

There are extremely rare, but occasionally fatal, cases of people developing blood clots after taking the AstraZeneca vaccine.

Separately, a very small number of people have experienced a severe allergic reaction after receiving the Pfizer vaccine.

You should discuss any existing serious allergies with your healthcare professional before being vaccinated.

If a close contact tests positive for Covid, you do not need to self-isolate if you have been fully vaccinated (as long as you can test negative).

Full vaccination makes international travel far simpler and cheaper.

It means you don't have to take a test before setting off to the UK and you don't have to self-isolate on returning to the UK.

On arrival you will only have to take a lateral flow test two days after coming back, rather than a more expensive PCR test.