WHEN France reported its first case of H5N1 bird flu in February, the UK’s response was adamant: samples had been taken from more than 3500 wild birds, and those tested so far showed the disease was not yet in the UK. Additional precautions, such as moving poultry indoors, were unnecessary, said the authorities.
Last week, scientists found H5N1 bird flu for the first time in the UK, in a dead swan in Fife, Scotland. The UK’s environment ministry DEFRA again stated that all wild birds tested so far were negative for flu, so it was unlikely to be widespread. Now…
