Zika Virus Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Department for International Development
Tom Brake
Main Page: Tom Brake (Liberal Democrat - Carshalton and Wallington)Department Debates - View all Tom Brake's debates with the Department for International Development
Zika Virus
Tom Brake Excerpts(8 years, 6 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Urgent Questions are proposed each morning by backbench MPs, and up to two may be selected each day by the Speaker. Chosen Urgent Questions are announced 30 minutes before Parliament sits each day.
Each Urgent Question requires a Government Minister to give a response on the debate topic.
This information is provided by Parallel Parliament and does not comprise part of the offical record
Mr Hurd
The mapping of south and central America is relatively well advanced, and I believe we have reasonably good information on that. The American authorities are alive to the risk and absolutely on it. To be honest with the hon. Gentleman, I am more concerned from a DFID perspective about the need to map and model the risks for other parts of the world, not least sub-Saharan Africa.
Tom Brake (Carshalton and Wallington) (LD)
The Australians have already allowed two virologists to go to Brazil. What work has the Minister done on analysing what expertise the UK has, and would he be prepared to release it to Brazil if the country requested it?
Mr Hurd
I can reassure the right hon. Gentleman that when it comes to research, science and medicine, this country has an extremely strong relationship with Brazil, which has developed over many years. As part of our response to the situation, connections have been made in that context, and I referred to the announcement of a £400,000 Newton Fund Zika research project between Glasgow University and Fiocruz in Pernambuco. British scientists and experts have already made it quite clear that we are prepared to help, and those connections are alive and well.