Swine Flu: Government urges vigilance

The UK must remain vigilant despite the swine flu outbreak appearing less serious than first feared, the Environment Secretary has said. Hilary Benn said the flu is "relatively mild and responds well to treatment here in the UK so far but we have got to remain vigilant". "It's best to play safe in relation to this. We are still not absolutely sure what it is that we are dealing with. The truth is we just don't know," he said. He said the outbreak was still "relatively small" and Britain is well prepared but that the "biggest worry" is that the H1N1 virus could mutate, so what might seem like an over-reaction was "the right thing to do". "We're just going to have to see how it goes," he added. Meanwhile, South Hampstead High School in north London has become the third UK school ordered to close after a pupil was diagnosed. Paignton Community and Sports College in Devon and Downend School in South Gloucestershire are already shut. On Sunday, the 14-year-old girl, from Barnet, north London, was confirmed as having the bug as the total number of UK victims reached 18 - 14 in England and four in Scotland. The independent girls' school posted a letter to parents on its website saying the year nine student is "at home and well" and that the school will be closed until at least Thursday. Antivirals have been offered to her year group and arrangements are being made for upcoming exams. The schoolgirl is the third case in the UK of someone contracting the virus without first travelling to Mexico or the US. The other most recent UK cases are an 11-year-old from Wandsworth, southwest London, who had travelled to the US and a man from Ayrshire, the fourth in the district to contract the disease. Scottish health secretary Nicola Sturgeon said he has no connection to the three cases which have previously been confirmed in the area and that he had flown back from Houston, Texas, in the US on Monday. The number of cases in London has now reached five. Other cases have been confirmed in Newcastle, Merseyside, Devon, Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and central Scotland. Health Secretary Alan Johnson said he expects more cases in the UK and predicts a second wave later this year. There have been at least 934 confirmed cases worldwide in Mexico, the US, Canada, Spain, the UK, Germany, New Zealand, Italy, France, Israel, South Korea, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ireland, Switzerland, Austria, Hong Kong, Denmark and Holland. Britain has the second-highest number of swine flu cases in Europe, after 40 confirmed cases in Spain.

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ITN | May 4, 2009

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