Coronavirus patients will be trialling a potential vaccine in the UK from later on this week.
UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the Government will be ploughing money into two laboratories currently developing a vaccine to the deadly bug.
More than £40 million of taxpayers money will be invested into Imperial College and the University of Oxford teams working on a cure.
One potential vaccine being developed by scientists in Oxford will be given human trials from this Thursday.
A further trial at the Imperial College in London is expected to begin soon.
The Tory minister made the announcement during the UK Government’s daily briefing on its approach to Covid-19 on Tuesday.
Mr Hancock said: "In the long run, the best way to defeat coronavirus is through a vaccine.
"After all, this is a new disease, this is uncertain science, but I'm certain we will throw everything we've got at developing a vaccine.
"The UK is at the front of the global effort.
"We have put more money than any other country into a global search for a vaccine and, for all the efforts around the world, two of the leading vaccine developments are taking place here at home - at Oxford and Imperial.
"Both of these promising projects are making rapid progress and I've told the scientists leading them we will do everything in our power to support."
A further 828 people in the UK have died after testing positive for coronavirus as of 5pm on Monday.
A total of 17,337 Covid-19 patients in the UK have now died since the outbreak of the virus earlier this year.
903 of those deaths recorded happened in hospitals in Scotland.
