Britain on December 12 became the first country to approve Pfizer-BioNTech’s Covid-19 vaccine for general use.

“The government has today accepted the recommendation from the independent Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to approve Pfizer-BioNTech’s Covid-19 vaccine for use,” the department of health said in a statement.

“The vaccine will be made available across the UK from next week,” the statement said, with priority groups including care home residents, health and care staff.

To this end, Pfizer said Britain’s emergency use authorisation marks a historic moment in the fight against COVID-19.

Britain will start vaccinating people against COVID-19 with the Pfizer vaccine next week.