Now, UK govt faces the big ethical debate of inoculating kids

London: For the UK government, vaccination of children will be the "next big ethical debate" as the country seeks to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic, local media reported.

The government is currently carrying out a review on the ethical dilemmas around vaccine passports and overseas travel, Xinhua news agency quoted a Sky News report as saying on Wednesday.

The latest development came as US drug company Pfizer announced that trials of its vaccine show 100 per cent efficacy and a strong immune response on 12 to 15-year-olds.

It is understood that children are less likely to be seriously ill with or die of coronavirus, but they can easily spread the disease to adults.

Pfizer has said it will ask for emergency US and European authorization for younger age groups.

It remains unclear what will happen in the UK as the current vaccines are authorised only for adults.

Nearly 31 million people have been given the first jab of the coronavirus vaccine, according to the official figures.