Coveney to brief Cabinet on ebola fears

The Government’s emergency task force has met amid fears that the killer ebola virus could sweep across the EU and spread to Ireland.

Defence Minister Simon Coveney has taken charge of dealing with the threat from the disease and will brief the Cabinet tomorrow on the country’s preparedness for a sudden outbreak here.

Mr Coveney chaired a special meeting of the Government Task Force on Emergency Planning last night as more than 50 people in Spain were under observation amid fears they had been exposed to ebola; it was confirmed the disease had killed its first victim in the US; and British prime minister David Cameron convened a meeting of the UK’s Cobra security committee to ready the country for any outbreak.