Netherlands begins mass vaccinations in Houten

The Netherlands continued its rollout of COVID-19 inoculations on Friday at a mass vaccination centre in Houten.

The Dutch government has come under fierce criticism for its late start to vaccinations.

The first shots were given on Wednesday, nearly two weeks after most other European Union nations.

Prime Minister Mark Rutte had told lawmakers in a debate Tuesday that authorities had focused preparations on the easy-to-handle vaccine made by Oxford University and AstraZeneca, which has not yet been cleared for use in the EU, and not the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.