The virus is now everywhere. Every single continent. Australia confirmed its first human case of H5N1 bird flu late last night. A child returned from India. The UK’s biosecurity units have been quietly mobilised.
Let’s be clear. This is not panic stations. Not yet. But the Lobby is buzzing. The joint biosecurity centre has been stood up. Port health teams are on standby. The Chief Veterinary Officer is burning the midnight oil.
Why the fuss? Because H5N1 has a frightening habit. It mutates. It jumps. The more human cases, the greater the risk of a pandemic strain. Australia’s case is the first for a human on that continent. But it won’t be the last. The virus is already circulating in wild birds there.
The government line is ‘vigilance not alarm’. But Whitehall sources tell me the real concern is poultry. Our free-range flocks. A single outbreak in a major chicken producer would be a disaster. The supermarkets would empty shelves. Prices would spike.
And there is the political angle. The farming community is already furious about post-Brexit border checks. If biosecurity measures are seen as too weak, the NFU will be on the warpath. If they are seen as draconian, the libertarian Tory backbenchers will revolt. Sunak is caught between a chicken and a hard place.
Meanwhile, Labour is sharpening its knives. They smell blood. ‘The government is asleep at the wheel’ is the whisper from the shadow health team. Expect a flurry of parliamentary questions tomorrow.
What to watch for. First, the next WHO update. Second, any travel advice changes. Third, and most importantly, any whispers of a ‘precautionary’ cull. That would be the real signal.
For now, the unit is mobilised. The briefings are being drafted. And every political editor in the country is watching the sky for the next migrating bird.
