UK on swine flu alert

Two people admitted to hospital suffering ‘flu-like symptoms’ after returning from Mexico are still under observation in Scotland, while health secretary Alan Johnson confirmed that a man taken to a London hospital after arriving at Heathrow on a flight from Mexico City did not have the H1N1 strain of the virus.

Passengers returning to Heathrow from Mexico City were kept on board to allow health officials to ask them if they felt unwell and assess anyone’s symptoms and travel history.

Mr Johnson said he had no doubt that there would be many more travellers coming into the country with flu-like symptoms but, as yet, no cases of swine flu had been confirmed in Britain.

The NHS has a stockpile of more than £500 million worth of the Tamiflu anti-viral drug, which has proved effective on patients in Mexico, and scientists are working on developing a vaccine against the new strain, Mr Johnson added.

Professor Hugh Pennington, a microbiologist who has advised the government on other public health issues, told the BBC that the UK is ‘better prepared than we have ever been before’.

Have your say

You must sign in to make a comment.