POLICE officers should be considered as one of the next groups to be vaccinated, according to a Bolton MP.

Yasmin Qureshi MP, who represents Bolton South East, met with Greater Manchester Police representatives who highlighted the risks officers face. They say coronavirus is being increasingly weaponised against police, with people claiming to be Covid-positive, as well as spitting and coughing at officers.

As they are unable to work from home, and cannot socially distance, the nature of their job involves dealing with the public in close quarters.

It comes as a police officer in neighbouring Bury, PC Jon Wain, died of coronavirus aged 49, prompting one of his colleagues to set up a petition to vaccinate the police force as soon as possible.

The petition has so far gained more than 111,000 signatures.

Ms Qureshi said: “While the most vulnerable people need vaccinating, the government should also be protecting our frontline workers who have protected us throughout this pandemic.

"We have around 7,000 police officers in Greater Manchester, with the current rates of vaccination we could get them vaccinated within a week, on a staggered basis, to protect them and our NHS.”

“We need a more targeted approach to vaccinations, with key workers considered more closely.

“This proportion of the population are disproportionately more at risk of catching Covid-19, becoming hospitalised, and dying.”

Within GMP, the positive case rate amongst staff is double the national rate of positive cases.

And due to resource issues, when police officers are forced to self-isolate as a result of a positive test, teams are spread even more thinly across the ground.

It has also been reported that the Etihad mass vaccination centre in Manchester is only running at around 50 per cent capacity because of the widespread success of surgeries, pharmacies and other vaccination sites.

With the vaccine having a shelf-life, the Labour MP believes it seems prudent to vaccinate police officers now and allow them to carry out their job safely and support them in their role with protecting the NHS.

Ms Qureshi added: “Our Police Officers are crucial in the fight against coronavirus.

“We need them to enforce the coronavirus legislation by breaking up parties, events, raves, and mass protests.

“This helps suppress cases, preventing hospitalisations and deaths, and alleviating stress on our already stretched NHS.”