Love Island star Yewande Biala has urged young people and those from ethnic minority backgrounds to get the Covid-19 jab.
The science graduate from Ireland, who has worked in vaccine development, appeared in a video speaking with healthcare professionals Professor Kevin Fenton and Dr Emeka Okorocha about issues surrounding the vaccine and its rollout.
Biala, who competed in the 2019 series of the ITV reality show, said there was an “abundance of scientific information to debunk false rumours” but that misinformation was “the symptom and not necessarily the cause” of hesitancy among some of the public.
The trio addressed common questions posed by black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities, including about the UK’s stringent approval measures, and addressed false information that has circulated on social media.
Biala said: “As someone that has previously worked with vaccines, I feel like I have a responsibility to help to increase confidence and trust in communities where there has been low take-up.
“It was important for me to hopefully educate people on the importance of vaccines and in particular the Covid-19 vaccine, helping to answer some questions they might have.”
Among adults aged 16 to 29 years, 17 per cent reported hesitancy towards the vaccine, compared with one per cent of adults aged 80 years and over, according to the latest data from the UK's Office for National Statistics.
The data also indicated less than half (49 per cent) of black or black British adults said they were likely to have the vaccine.
