Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, on what dates cross-governmental meetings to discuss the Exercise Cygnus report on pandemic preparedness took place.

Working across Government and with stakeholders, the lessons identified from Exercise Cygnus have informed our preparedness, such as development of draft legislation support to the response to a future influenza pandemic and strengthening health sector plans to surge and flex beyond normal operations. Learning the lessons from preparedness exercises, as well as other sources of expertise has ensured that the United Kingdom remains well prepared for infectious disease outbreaks.

Ministers at the Department participated in Exercise Cygnus and have been kept informed of the subsequent work to strengthen our preparedness.

The lessons learned from Exercise Cygnus continue to be discussed and considered by the Government and a range of stakeholders, including expert advisory groups and local emergency planners in reviewing response plans.