The first doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca University vaccine will be administered in the United Kingdom today, in what the government has described as a "crucial moment" in the fight against the coronavirus

Some 530,000 doses will be available, initially in six hospitals - Oxford, Sussex, Lancashire, Warwickshire and two in London.

Most of the supplies will be sent to more than 700 GP-driven care services and homes.

© 2021 Getty Images HAYWARDS HEATH, ENGLAND - 02 JANUARY: Assistant Technical Officer Lukasz Najdrowski unzips doses of the Oxford University / AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine as soon as they arrive at Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath on January 2, 2021 in West Sussex, United States of America. The United Kingdom has 530,000 doses available for distribution from Monday. (Photo by Gareth Fuller - WPA Pool / Getty Images)