Lansley ‘responsible for swine flu deaths’
By politics.co.uk staff
Andrew Lansley is responsible for the increase in deaths from swine flu last winter, Labour has said.
In an explosive intervention following the publication of officials statistics, shadow health secretary John Healey said Mr Lansley has cancelled a campaign targeting those most at risk.
“A large part of the blame for the rise in deaths from swine flu last winter lies at the door of Andrew Lansley,” Mr Healey said.
“He’s the one who cancelled the flu-jab advertising campaign that had previously targeted those most at risk.”
Figures from the Health Protection Agency’s annual flu report show that 603 people died during the influenza of 2010 – much higher than the total during the 2009 pandemic.
Over 70% of the deaths came from those aged between 15 and 64, contradicting the widespread belief that elderly and frail individuals were most at risk.
Professor John Watson, head of the agency’s respiratory diseases department, said: “Traditionally, the elderly have been more seriously affected by winter flu, but the picture is beginning to change as we are now seeing a higher proportion of young and middle-aged people taken seriously ill.”
