NHS chief executive Sir Simon Stevens has revealed a coronavirus patient is admitted to hospital "every 30 seconds" and warned of the "extreme pressure" facing the NHS.

Speaking on the Andrew Marr show earlier, Sir Simon said the Covid crisis was a "unique event" in the NHS's history, but was positive about the vaccine roll-out and improving treatments.

Here is a summary of his key points:

•Since Christmas, patient numbers have risen by 15,000 - the equivalent of 30 full hospitals
•There are signs the number of infections are stabilising in some areas, but infections in over-60s continue to rise and pressure on the health service "will only get worse" in next few weeks
•The number of critical care beds has increased by 50% since the first wave of the pandemic but a "very small number" of patients are still being transferred to hospitals in other regions
•Treatments for Covid are continuing "to evolve and improve" with more patients being treated with oxygen therapy rather than in intensive care
•Hospitals will open for vaccinations 24 hours a day, seven days a week, on a trial basis in the next 10 days
•The NHS is vaccinating at the rate of 140 jabs a minute, and Sir Simon says he is "confident" the NHS will deliver 1.5 million vaccines this week
•No one is being asked to throw away excess vaccines: "Every last drop of vaccine should be used," Sir Simon tells Andrew Marr
•With 53,000 NHS staff currently off work for coronavirus-related reasons, Sir Simon "strongly thinks" NHS and social care staff need to be protected with a second vaccine dose.

Simon Stevens said he expects lockdown to be eased gradually, and it will be a "balance of risk"