A new poll has found that just 57% of respondents from Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds were likely to accept a COVID-19 vaccine, compared to 79% of white respondents.

The polling commissioned by the Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) revealed that confidence was lowest among respondents of Asian ethnicity, with 55% likely to say yes if they were advised to have the vaccine by their GP or health professional.

The polling also highlighted significantly more hesitancy among lower income groups, with just 70% of those on the lowest incomes likely to take the vaccine, compared to 84% of the highest earners.

Overall, three in four (76%) of the public in the UK would take a COVID-19 vaccine if advised to do, with just 8% stating they would be very unlikely to do so.

Fourteen per cent of Londoners said they are ‘very unlikely' to get the vaccine – the highest proportion in the UK.

According to the RSPH the findings ‘reinforce the need for dedicated efforts to support vaccine uptake among BAME communities, who have already suffered far higher COVID death rates throughout the pandemic'.

The RSPH added that the existence of significantly more hesitancy among lower income groups ‘should be of special concern to the Government given the death rates from COVID in the poorest areas have been more than double those in better off areas'.

The findings come following the publication of a new report by Sir Michael Marmot this week arguing that social and economic inequalities have been made worse by COVID-19.