Two in every 100 people aged over 50 in Watford have yet to receive their first Covid jab – despite being invited to book more than two months ago.

The NHS has hailed reaching the "home straight" of the vaccination rollout with 75 per cent of adults in England having had their first dose and more than half fully vaccinated.

But figures suggest there is still hesitancy amongst over 50s in some areas, which could slow the race against the virus as the dominant Indian variant spreads.

NHS England data for Watford shows 654 people aged 50 and over had still to receive a first dose as of May 30 – ​2 per cent of the age group based on latest population estimates.

The figure was highest in the neighbourhood of Woodside and Leavesden Green where 6.4 per cent of over 50s had not yet received a Covid jab.

Dr Perpetua Emeagi, a lecturer in human biology and biological sciences at Liverpool Hope University, said not enough information had been given to ease a deep scepticism  among the black, Asian and minority ethnic community.

She said: “Materials on the Government website are perhaps tricky to find and are aimed predominantly at health professionals rather than the average person.

“We need to do more to get this information out to those with real concerns about a vaccination programme they’re reluctant to embrace."

Last month, the NHS released separate data on ethnicity showing vaccine uptake across England among black Caribbean people was the lowest, with 37 per cent of those aged 50 and over unvaccinated by May 7.

Watford Observer: There are still fears of vaccine hesitancy among the over 50s.There are still fears of vaccine hesitancy among the over 50s.

Labour's shadow women and equalities secretary, Marsha de Cordova, said the vaccination programme had "exacerbated existing health inequalities of race and ethnicity".

She added: "These next few weeks are crucial in containing outbreaks of the Delta variant - increasing vaccine uptake must be ministers' number one priority.”

Across England, 4 per cent of people aged 50 and over – 800,600 adults – had not been vaccinated as of May 30.

Regionally, London had the lowest uptake with 11 per cent of people aged 50 and over unvaccinated, while the South West had the highest, with just 2 per cent unvaccinated.

In the East of England, 3 per cent of people aged 50 and over were unvaccinated.