Beautiful Virgin Islands

Thursday, Oct 30, 2025

Finally! UK to deliver on 2nd dose of COVID-19 vaccines

Finally! UK to deliver on 2nd dose of COVID-19 vaccines

After much private and public pressure, the United Kingdom (UK) will finally be delivering on its promised second batch of AstraZeneca vaccines.

Word reaching our newsroom from our sources in the Governor’s Office is that the shipment from the United Kingdom (UK) is scheduled to arrive at Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport on Beef Island at 8:00pm tomorrow night, March 17, 2021.

Sources in the Governor’s Office were happy to leak this story to our news site after Government officials in the Ministry of Health and others close to the Minister said that the UK had changed their date on the arrival of the vaccines for almost 3 times and had almost compromised the health of persons requiring the second dose.

The Virgin Islands has received its first shipment of roughly 8000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine from the United Kingdom on February 4, 2021, however, the promised second batch initially scheduled to arrive on March 3, 2021, is yet to arrive.


National vaccination programme interrupted over UK delay


The uncertainty over when the promised second batch of COVID-19 vaccines would arrive in the Virgin Islands (VI) from the UK, causing a brief pause to the vaccination programme in the territory.

The first batch of 8000 units of vaccines arrived in the VI on February 4, 2021, and Governor John J. Rankin, CMG had promised the VI that the second dose would arrive in the VI on March 3, 2021; however, that did not happen and there was no explanation.

When asked by the Ministry of Health and Social Development for an update, the same Governor promised a new date of March 15, 2021. It left the Government of the day in a dilemma as to whether or not to vaccinate the residents with the remaining four thousand doses of the eight thousand, knowing that it’s a two-shot dose arrangement.

On Sunday, March 7, 2021, the Virgin Islands received 2000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines for immediate distribution from the Government of Dominica. Premier Andrew A. Fahie (R1), left, and Health Minister Hon Carvin Malone (AL), right, were present at the Terrence B. Lettsome International Airport on Beef Island to receive the shipment.


VI received 2000 doses through COVAX


Again, Governor Rankin assured the Government that the second dose is on the way. Recently, he again changed the date for the arrival of the second dose of vaccine to March 17, 2021, undermining the trust of the people in the UK's ability to gift the territory with anything.

The delay of the vaccines had caused a pause in the territory’s COVID-19 vaccination programme; however, after the VI received some 2000 doses of the vaccines from Dominica via COVAX, thanks to foresight by the Andrew A. Fahie-led Government, the programme resumed.

It is also alleged that Governor Rankin had even tried to stop the order placed by the Fahie government with COVAX.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
UK and Vietnam Sign Landmark Migration Deal to Fast-Track Returns of Irregular Arrivals
UK Drug-Pricing Overhaul Essential for Life-Sciences Ambition, Says GSK Chief
Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie Temporarily Leave the UK Amid Their Parents’ Royal Fallout
UK Weighs Early End to Oil and Gas Windfall Tax as Reeves Seeks Investment Commitments
UK Retail Inflation Slows as Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since Spring
Next Raises Full-Year Profit Guidance After Strong Third-Quarter Performance
Reform UK’s Lee Anderson Admits to 'Gaming' Benefits System While Advocating Crackdown
United States and South Korea Conclude Major Trade Accord Worth $350 Billion
Hurricane Melissa Strikes Cuba After Devastating Jamaica With Record Winds
Vice President Vance to Headline Turning Point USA Campus Event at Ole Miss
U.S. Targets Maritime Narco-Routes While Border Pressure to Mexico Remains Limited
Bill Gates at 70: “I Have a Real Fear of Artificial Intelligence – and Also Regret”
Elon Musk Unveils Grokipedia: An AI-Driven Alternative to Wikipedia
Saudi Arabia Unveils Vision for First-Ever "Sky Stadium" Suspended Over Desert Floor
Amazon Announces 14 000 Corporate Job Cuts as AI Investment Accelerates
UK Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since March, Food Leads the Decline
London Stock Exchange Group ADR (LNSTY) Earns Zacks Rank #1 Upgrade on Rising Earnings Outlook
Soap legend Tony Adams, long-time star of Crossroads, dies at 84
Rachel Reeves Signals Tax Increases Ahead of November Budget Amid £20-50 Billion Fiscal Gap
NatWest Past Gains of 314% Spotlight Opportunity — But Some Key Risks Remain
UK Launches ‘Golden Age’ of Nuclear with £38 Billion Sizewell C Approval
UK Announces £1.08 Billion Budget for Offshore Wind Auction to Boost 2030 Capacity
UK Seeks Steel Alliance with EU and US to Counter China’s Over-Capacity
UK Struggles to Balance China as Both Strategic Threat and Valued Trading Partner
Argentina’s Markets Surge as Milei’s Party Secures Major Win
British Journalist Sami Hamdi Detained by U.S. Authorities After Visa Revocation Amid Israel-Gaza Commentary
King Charles Unveils UK’s First LGBT+ Armed Forces Memorial at National Memorial Arboretum
At ninety-two and re-elected: Paul Biya secures eighth term in Cameroon amid unrest
Racist Incidents Against UK Nurses Surge by 55%
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Cites Shared Concerns With Trump Administration as Foundation for Early US-UK Trade Deal
Essentra plc: A Closer Look at a UK ‘Penny Stock’ Opportunity Amid Market Weakness
U.S. and China Near Deal to Avert Rare-Earth Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
Justin time: Justin Herbert Shields Madison Beer with Impressive Reflex at Lakers Game
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
Giuffre’s Memoir Alleges Maxwell Claimed Sexual Act with Clooney
House Republicans Move to Strip NYC Mayoral Front-Runner Zohran Mamdani of U.S. Citizenship
Record-High Spoiled Ballots Signal Voter Discontent in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential Election
Philippines’ Taal Volcano Erupts Overnight with 2.4 km Ash Plume
Albania’s Virtual AI 'Minister' Diella Set to 'Birth' Eighty-Three Digital Assistants for MPs
Tesla Unveils Vision for Optimus V3 as ‘Biggest Product of All Time’, Including Surgical Capabilities
Francis Ford Coppola Auctions Luxury Watches After Self-Financed Film Flop
Convicted Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed by UK Prison Service Arrested in London
United States and China Begin Constructive Trade Negotiations Ahead of Trump–Xi Summit
U.S. Treasury Sanctions Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro over Drug-Trafficking Allegations
Miss USA Crowns Nebraska’s Audrey Eckert Amid Leadership Overhaul
‘I Am Not Done’: Kamala Harris Signals Possible 2028 White House Run
NBA Faces Integrity Crisis After Mass Arrests in Gambling Scandal
Swift Heist at the Louvre Sees Eight French Crown Jewels Stolen in Under Seven Minutes
U.S. Halts Trade Talks with Canada After Ontario Ad Using Reagan Voice Triggers Diplomatic Fallout
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
×