WHO epidemic alert - We need to strengthen our defences

THE warning from the World Health Organisation that infectious diseases are spreading faster than ever before must be a cause for concern.

In its annual report the WHO also warns new diseases are emerging at the “historically unprecedented” rate of one a year.

The report suggests that because 2.1 billion people use airlines each year, there is a high risk of a big epidemic such as Aids, Sars, bird flu or ebola fever.