COVID-19 vaccine still works against new strains of coronavirus, says German health minister

A new strain of the coronavirus is sweeping through Europe

The approved Covid-19 vaccine is still effective in fighting new strains of coronavirus, according to German health minister Jens Spahn. A mutated variation of Covid-19 has already swept through the UK, and is believed to be responsible for a surge in new cases. As of Sunday, December 20th there were almost 36,000 new cases in Britain. The mutant strain has also made its way into Denmark, Holland, Australia, Italy and Belgium. Lockdown restrictions were severely tightened across the UK on Saturday by Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his counterparts in devolved governments. Political leaders across the UK blamed the tightening of lockdown on this mutated strain, due to its impact on the rise in new cases. As a result, mass panic ensued. People rushed to catch the last trains out of London, and shops across the country saw a late flurry of Christmas shoppers on Saturday night. [caption id="attachment_259428" align="alignnone" width="2048"] Margaret Keenan, 90, was the first patient in the United Kingdom to receive the Pfizer/BioNtech Covid-19 vaccine. (Photo by Jacob King - Pool / Getty Images)[/caption] However, health experts assert that the Covid-19 vaccine should still be effective in tackling the mutated virus. In an interview with broadcaster ZDF, German health minister Jens Spahn sought to allay fears surrounding the vaccine's efficacy against the new strain. Spahn said: "According to everything we know so far, [the new strain] has no impact on the vaccines." He added the Covid-19 vaccine will remain "just as effective" in tackling the pandemic. Spahn's sentiments were supported by the French government, who released the following statement: "This genetic variant does not seem to entail, at this stage of knowledge, a heightened seriousness or a resistance to the vaccine." The vaccine Spahn et al are referring to is that produced by Pfizer-BioNTech, which has been approved for use in the UK. It has already been rolled out by the NHS to those most at risk. The Pfizer vaccine has been approved for use in the USA, and is also set to gain authorisation from the European Medicines Agency for use across the continent.