He said this was a time when people were being told to stay at home and not be out and circulating.

"In a normal influenza year we would try to have certain people over 60-65 have their flu vaccine a little bit later in the year," he said.

"There was evidence that came out that actually changed the process of releasing government flu vaccines from the beginning of March to the end of March.

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"There was an expectation that anywhere between 12 and 16 weeks after your influenza vaccination, if you were over 65 your immunity may not be there by the time the main part of the flu season came through."

Dr Martin said the main peak of the flu season was from mid-August until September. He said influenza vaccine did not protect against coronavirus.

"To date we have not had any indication that there is an early flu season coming through," he said.

"There are a variety of vaccines that are available, and the one that's dedicated to people with a possibly weakened immune system ... is a vaccine that covers all four strains.

"Anyone over the age of 65 is entitled to a free government vaccine with an extra component to it that makes the immune system pay much more attention to that vaccine."

Dr Martin said vaccine given by chemists for under 65s did not have the extra component, so could leave people unprotected during the peak period if given too early.

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