People aged 36 and 37 can now book a Covid vaccination, Matt Hancock has announced.
The Health Secretary said he was 'delighted' to be able to open up vaccinations to the next age group and urged anyone who gets the call to get the jab.
Mr Hancock said in a tweet: "I’m delighted that people aged 36 & 37 can now book a vaccination.
"The vaccine is saving lives & helping us on the roadmap, so massive thank you to everyone playing their part in our national effort.
"When you get the call, get the jab."
At the same time, over 50s are having their second jabs brought forward on the advice of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI).
The moves comes amid continuing concern about the fast-spreading B.1.617.2 variant - first identified in India - with some scientists warning it could lead to a deadly new wave of the virus.
People in Blackburn with Darwen have flocked to get their jabs, with increased vaccination under way amid concerns over the spread of the Indian variant of coronavirus.
Additional supplies of more than 1,000 Pfizer vaccines per day for the next fortnight have been made available for the East Lancashire borough which currently has the third highest Covid-19 rate in the UK - behind Bolton and Bedford.
Over the weekend more than 6,200 vaccines were administered in the Bolton area, as their neighbours in Blackburn began their surge on Monday for those eligible.
Appointments were filled throughout the day on Monday at the Everest Pharmacy in Darwen, with five other similar vaccination centres opening from Tuesday.
In the Commons on Monday, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said there were now 2,323 confirmed cases of the Indian strain in the UK, with 86 local authority areas recording at least five.
Worst hit have been Bolton and Blackburn with Darwen - where it is now the dominant strain with a total of 483 cases across the two areas - followed by Bedford.
The authorities have responded by deploying "surge" vaccinations and testing in virus hotspots in an attempt to curb the spread of the disease.
However, Mr Hancock expressed frustration that of the 19 hospital cases in Bolton, the majority had not had the vaccine, even though they were eligible.
Vaccine hesitancy should not be tackled with "pointing the finger", one commentator has said, after the Health Secretary expressed "frustration" over people not taking up the offer of a Covid-19 jab.
Dr Zubaida Haque, the former deputy director of the Runnymede Trust, a race equality think tank, said that vaccine hesitancy was being used as a "red herring" by the Government.
The remarks come after Matt Hancock voiced his frustration that some people are still not getting the coronavirus vaccine, amid fears of the spread of the variant first identified in India.
Mr Hancock said the majority of people admitted to hospital in Bolton, which has seen the biggest outbreak of the B1.617.2 variant, had been eligible for the jab but had not taken it up.
"The majority have not been vaccinated and, of them, most of them could have been vaccinated, which is frustrating to see, but is also a message to everyone," Mr Hancock said in the House of Commons on Monday.
"It just reinforces the message that people should come forward and get vaccinated because that is the best way to protect everybody."
