A review of the UK Government’s response to the swine flu threat last year has been released today. The review by Dame Deirdre Hine has said that although the operation was expensive at £1.25 billion, it was proportionate and effective. There were 457 confirmed swine flu deaths (much lower than the number who die each year from seasonal flu) but it is difficult to say that this low number was a result of the effective handling of the matter by the government. There are many people in the medical profession who believe that the world response to swine flu was completely over the top and could not be justified on any evidential basis. The UK is now left with millions of vaccines that will never be used. The stockpiles of anti-virals, such as Tamiflu and Relenza, will not go completely to waste however as they are effective against seasonal flu.

In our view, the Government was in an invidious position; if it did not respond adequately and there was a high number of deaths then it would be criticized, just as some people are criticizing it now for going over the top and blowing £1.25 million of taxpayers’ cash.