He says he has had two jabs and so far his symptoms are “very mild” after he felt “groggy” on Friday.
image copyrightEPA
Health Secretary Sajid Javid says he has tested positive for Covid-19 and is suffering “very mild” symptoms.
Mr Javid, who said he had received both vaccine doses, took a lateral flow test on Saturday morning after feeling a “bit groggy” on Friday night and it came back positive.
He said he is now self-isolating until he gets the results of a PCR test.
It comes as the UK recorded more than 50,000 daily cases for the second day running.
There were 54,674 cases, compared to 51,870 cases on Friday. There were 41 deaths within 28 days of a positive coronavirus test.
The last time cases exceeded 50,000 was in mid-January.
In a video posted on his Twitter feed, Mr Javid said: “I was feeling a bit groggy last night, so I took a lateral flow test this morning and it’s come out positive, so I’m now self-isolating at home with my family until I get the results of a PCR test.
“I’m grateful that I’ve had two jabs of the vaccine and so far my symptoms are very mild.”
He urged people who had not been vaccinated yet to “get out there and get them as soon as you can”.
Mr Javid also said people who feel groggy or come into contact with someone who is positive should take a lateral flow test.
“If everyone plays their part, you’re not only protecting yourself and your loved ones but you’re also safeguarding the NHS and helping to preserve our way of life,” he added.
Mr Javid replaced Matt Hancock as health secretary less than three weeks ago after CCTV footage emerged showing his predecessor kissing a colleague in his office, in breach of social-distancing rules.
Earlier this week, Mr Javid made his first visit to a care home as health secretary at Aashna Care in Streatham, south London.
The home has a 100% vaccination rate among staff and residents, the majority of whom are from a black and minority ethnic background.
Boris Johnson and Mr Hancock both caught Covid-19 during the first wave of the pandemic in 2020, with the prime minister being admitted to intensive care at St Thomas’ Hospital in London after falling seriously ill.
Mr Javid previously tweeted that he had received the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.
A Public Health England study found two doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine was 60% effective at stopping symptomatic disease from the Delta variant, which is now dominant across the UK. Two jabs of the Pfizer vaccine was 88% effective.
A separate analysis from PHE found the vaccines were highly effective against preventing hospitalisations from the same variant, with two doses of the Pfizer jab 96% effective and the AstraZeneca jab 92%.
Lateral flow tests provide a quick result, using a device similar to a pregnancy test and are intended for use in those without symptoms, according to the NHS. PCR tests are mainly used when people have coronavirus symptoms or have already had a positive lateral flow result, and are sent to laboratories to be checked. The NHS suggests people do a lateral flow test twice a week to check if they have the virus.
The health secretary’s announcement comes as the government prepares to go ahead with the final lifting of lockdown restrictions in England on Monday.
Social-distancing rules will end, although government guidelines advise face coverings should still be worn in enclosed spaces such as in shops and on public transport, while pubs and bars should be table service only.
Jeremy Hunt, the chairman of the Commons health select committee, warned there was a danger that England may have to go back into lockdown in the autumn if hospitalisation rates continued to increase during the summer.
Mr Hunt, a former health secretary, said the situation facing the NHS was “very serious”.
“The warning light on the NHS dashboard is not flashing amber, it is flashing red,” he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.
And one scientist advising the government said the country could be facing a “protracted period” of rising cases running into the autumn.
Prof John Edmunds, of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and a member of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), said new infections could reach 100,000 a day within weeks.
