BASILDON’S Towngate Theatre will be used as a mass vaccination centre, health secretary Matt Hancock has announced. 

Mr Hancock announced the news during a press briefing on Friday afternoon. 

He said ten more vaccine centres are being opened and one of these will be at the Towngate Theatre in Basildon. 

The theatre is currently a Covid testing centre, but leading figures had been calling for it to also take on vaccinations. 

Read more: Updates as Matt Hancock gives Covid vaccine briefing from Downing Street

Speaking earlier this month deputy council leader Kerry Smith said: "You wouldn’t be able to have both the testing centre and the vaccine site in the same place.

“But there’s so many empty shops in the town, the testing centre could be downsized and moved into those.

“We have to treat vaccine and testing equally, but we do need another mass delivery vaccine site in the town.”