Revealed: The seven mass vaccination centres set to open next week

Boris Johnson has revealed where seven mass coronavirus vaccination centres will open next week.

The prime minister’s official spokesman said: “We are rolling up and ramping up the programme.”

The venues are:

• Robertson House in Stevenage

• ExCel Centre in London

• Centre for Life in Newcastle

• Etihad Tennis Centre in Manchester

• Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey

• Ashton Gate Stadium in Bristol

• Millennium Point in Birmingham

The spokesman said he expected the centres to be run by a combination of NHS staff and volunteers.

With Johnson facing an increasingly dire winter COVID-19 crisis – he imposed a national lockdown on England on Monday amid infections spiralling out of control and warnings hospitals would be “overwhelmed” within three weeks – his government is relying on the rollout of the two available vaccines to ultimately end the cycle of recurring restrictions.

On Tuesday, Johnson said 1.3 million people in the UK – including 1.1 million in England – have now received a COVID-19 vaccine.

Watch: Boris Johnson: We are in a race to vaccinate the most vulnerable

The figure includes 650,000 people over 80, though this is still only 23% of all people over 80 in England, who are deemed among the most vulnerable to the virus.

Johnson told MPs in the House of Commons on Wednesday that the government is in “a race to vaccinate the vulnerable faster than the virus can reach them – every needle in every arm makes a difference”.

Meanwhile, PA reported that other facilities under consideration for mass vaccination centres include:

• Derby Arena

• Black Country Living Museum, Dudley

• Malvern’s Three Counties’ Showground, Worcestershire

• Villa Park, home of Aston Villa FC in Birmingham

• Leicester Racecourse

Supermarket chain Morrisons has confirmed that car parks at three stores – in Yeovil, Wakefield and Winsford – will host drive-through vaccinations from Monday, with a further 47 offered to the government.

Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur has also offered the use of its stadium to the NHS as a venue to roll out the vaccine.

Watch: What you can and can't do during England's third national lockdown