London, May 12: A COVID-19 vaccine is "by no means guaranteed," British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday night.

Speaking at a press conference, Johnson referred to the part Britain was playing in looking for a valid coronavirus vaccine, Xinhua reported.

Asked by the media, Johnson said he hopes that a vaccine will be developed, but there is no guarantee. "I'm hearing some very encouraging things from what's going on at Oxford (University) to achieve a vaccine." Can We Manufacture Enough COVID-19 Vaccine for the Whole World When Its Ready?

"What I can tell you is that the UK is at the forefront of concerting international activity to try to deliver a vaccine," said Johnson.

The government's Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance said the chances of developing a vaccine for the disease is getting higher. But he also agreed with Johnson's comment that it was not guaranteed.

Earlier on Monday, the British government published a document of the long-expected COVID-19 recovery plan, hoping to gradually ease the lockdown measures while at the same time getting the coronavirus pandemic under control.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 12, 2020 08:51 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).