OVER 30 new cases of coronavirus have been recorded in Ceredigion according to today’s official figures.

Public Health Wales’ daily figures show that 35 new cases have been recorded in Ceredigion today while Carmarthenshire has recorded 187 new cases; Pembrokeshire, 38; Powys, 44 and Gwynedd, 16.

13 new suspected Covid-19 deaths have been recorded today taking the total number of coronavirus-related fatalities in Wales since the pandemic began to 3,429.

There was however some good news today with the announcement that The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has now authorised the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine as safe and effective on the basis of detailed independent expert review of evidence from large scale clinical trials.

The UK Government has procured vaccines on behalf of the four nations and around 100 million of these are of the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine, with Wales receiving its allocation based on population over the next weeks and months.

Two doses will be needed, with an interval of between four and 12 weeks between doses.

At the beginning of December, the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine was the first to receive MHRA approval in the UK. 40 million doses of the vaccine have been made available for delivery across the UK.

Based on a UK-wide priority system, the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine has already begun to be administered to frontline health and social care staff, as well as care home residents and staff and people aged over 80. Latest figures show that in the first 2 weeks 22,000 people were vaccinated - expected to be over 30,000 now. Further statistics will be released on Thursday.

Unlike the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine, the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine is stored at normal vaccine fridge temperatures. This means it will have few storage and transportation issues, making it much easier to use in community settings such as care homes and primary care settings like GP surgeries.

People are asked not to phone their GP, pharmacy or hospital asking when they will get a vaccine. When someone is in one of the groups eligible for the vaccine, they will be invited to attend a dedicated clinic which will have been set up to ensure patient safety and that of the healthcare professionals.

The effects of the vaccines may not be seen nationally for many months and the advice on keeping Wales safe remains the same for everyone; keep contacts with other people to a minimum, keep a two metre distance from others, wash hands regularly, wear a face covering where required and avoid touching surfaces others have touched, wherever possible.

Welsh Health Minister Vaughan Gething said: “We understand there are high expectations and excitement at the arrival of a second vaccine. “However it will take time to reach everyone as this is not an instant fix. We won’t receive all the doses at once and we have to be realistic about the scale and pace of delivery when we are vaccinating the entire adult population.

“We will not see the impact of the vaccine for some months and the pressure on the NHS will continue during this winter. It is essential that we all continue to play our part and do the right thing to protect each other.

“Nobody will be left behind by our NHS. To help the NHS to help you please wait to be invited for your vaccination.”

Dr Robin Howe, Incident Director for the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak response at Public Health Wales, added: “We welcome the approval of a second Coronavirus vaccine for use in the UK, and the Welsh Government announcement that its roll-out across Wales will start next week.

“Although we are right to celebrate this announcement, we would sound a note of caution because vaccinating the adult population of Wales is a significant task, and the vaccine will take time to reach everyone.”