The Member of Parliament for Winchester and Chandler’s Ford quizzed the Health Secretary on the Government’s plan on building resilience to future pandemics.
Speaking during Matt Hancock’s statement to the House, Steve Brine said; “The roadmap contains a chapter on building resilience to future pandemics, which I think we have to be honest and say are not going to leave us alone for hundred years. So, with respect to the global network of zoonotic research hubs, which the Prime Minister wisely set out in his five-point plan at the UN last September can we make sure these build on the work of experienced virus hunters already out there, organisations like the Global Health Network, who have years of experience searching for unseen viruses that leap from animals to humans.”
The Secretary of State responded saying; “Yes, the proposed work, as set out by the Prime Minster at the UN General Assembly which we’re working on with our presidency of the G7, aims precisely to build on and strengthen the existing work that has been underway, but clearly, we need to ensure that all the future risks, whether they’re from zoonotic diseases or due to environmental changes that lead to risk to human health.
All these things need to be taken into account and we need to have an early warning system that is as effective as possible.”
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