Australia says it has secured an extra four million doses of the Pfizer vaccine from the UK in a swap deal.

Prime Minister of Australia, Scott Morrison said the extra vaccines would help his country come out of its lockdowns sooner.

About half of Australia’s population is currently in lockdown due to outbreaks in Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra.

Mr Morrison did not give details of the reciprocal arrangement. Local media said it was likely Australia would send doses to the UK in a few months.

Australia has ramped up vaccination rates in recent weeks, after drawing criticism for a slow rollout.

Mr Morrison said the Pfizer doses would leave for Australia on Saturday.

“This will enable us to bring forward significantly the opportunity for Australia to open up again,” he told reporters on Friday.

Mr Morrison’s government has drawn criticism for failing to secure more Pfizer doses early on, and for not better addressing public concerns about rare clotting from the AstraZeneca vaccine.