THE team behind the delivery of coronavirus vaccination appointments at the East Lothian Community Hospital in Haddington have apologised for delays on Monday.

Reports were made of queues at the hospital, with people struggling to get in to park their cars.

However, the NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) rejected claims that there had been double bookings.

A spokesperson said: “Our teams are working hard to ensure those eligible get their vaccination and we’d like to thank all those attending their scheduled appointments. The vaccination centres can be busy and staff do their best to minimise wait times; we apologise for any delays that the public may face at their allocated venue.

“The booking system doesn’t allow over-booking of appointments. The number allocated at each venue is calculated by taking into account the size of the space, opening hours of the venue, time taken for each appointment and the number of available staff.

“Our national vaccination programme is being delivered at unprecedented pace to save lives across Scotland.

“Every vaccine given contributes toward lives being saved and we thank patients for playing their part.”

The hospital, built on the site of the former Roodlands hospital, was also used over the weekend as a Covid-19 vaccination drop-in centre for the over-40s.

Rising cases of coronavirus led to health chiefs rolling out the clinic for people in the age range who required a first or second dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine.

A spokeswoman for NHS Lothian confirmed more than 600 people had visited over the two days.