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David Walliams SUES
Britain's Got Talent
bosses 10 months after
star was axed from
ITV's hit talent show
The next major pandemic is coming. It’s already on the horizon, and could be far over foul-mouthed rant
worse — killing millions more people — than the last one. about contestant
Victoria Beckham
shows off her sultry
side as she strikes a
provocative pose in a
black convertible for her
sexiest ever shoot
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+4
View gallery
The next major pandemic is coming. It’s already on the horizon, and could be far worse —
killing millions more people — than the last one (file image)
Let me remind you of the state we were in by May 2020. The outlook was
unremittingly bleak: infections and deaths were mounting inexorably and hospitals
SAVE 80%
were at breaking-point. The pandemic had ruptured economic activity more than
any recession.
£12
Mass vaccination was the only credible solution, but no human coronavirus vaccine
had ever been approved, let alone one for Covid-19. Worse, the historic success rate
for any new vaccines, from lab to jab, was a deeply depressing 10 per cent. So the
scale of the challenge was stupendous.
It was in May that the then Health Secretary Matt Hancock phoned me out of the SAVE 76%
blue, asking me to become head of the new Vaccine Taskforce. I immediately took
leave of absence from my job of nearly 30 years as a biotech venture capitalist —
£15
leave of absence from my job of nearly 30 years as a biotech venture capitalist —
£15
dealing with the development of new drugs — to work on finding a portfolio of
vaccines, in the hope that at least one would be effective.
While scientists around the world threw themselves into developing possible
vaccines at what seemed like warp speed, the taskforce worked around the clock to
prioritise the best candidates at early stages, to check they were both safe and SAVE 50%
Kate Middleton
The whole point of a virus is to replicate
discusses how her
as many times as possible in as many daughter Princess
Charlotte is a keen
hosts as possible. So they are continually dancer during her
mutating and latching on to different animals. outing a Lancaster
factory today
In fact, some of the most dangerous viruses — such as smallpox, measles, Ebola and Demi Moore, 60,
HIV — originated in animals and later became highly transmissible between humans. dazzles in black-and-
white dress and
matching hat as she
Today, there are more viruses busily replicating and mutating than all the other life poses with her dog Pilaf
forms on our planet combined. Not all of them pose a threat to humans, of course — to promote series Feud:
Capote Vs The Swans
but plenty do.
EXCLUSIVE Ariana
So far, scientists are aware of 25 virus families, each of them comprising hundreds or Grande and new love
Ethan Slater 'are really
thousands of different viruses, any of which could evolve to cause a pandemic. happy and good for
each other' after pair
visited Disneyland with
Worse still, they estimate there could be more than one million undiscovered viruses
her friends and family
which may be able to jump from one species to another, mutate dramatically and kill
Why you shouldn't
millions of human beings. delay writing a will (and
how to do it affordably
Why were we so surprised when Covid-19 struck in 2020? It wasn’t as if we were and with ease)
Why were we so surprised when Covid-19 struck in 2020? It wasn’t as if we were
AD FEATURE
being attacked out of the blue — say, by a giant asteroid or aliens from another
planet.
Birkenstocks
Davide Sanclimenti
In fact, the warning shots had already been fired. We knew that Covid — or attends party with
something like it — was likely to arrive sooner rather than later because the pace of Harriet Wilson - after his
girlfriend Ekin-Su
pandemics had been quickening over the past few decades. Culculoglu accused
them of sleeping
together
Unlike an epidemic, which is contained in a single country or region, a pandemic
spreads across many countries and even continents. Covid-19 was actually the ADVERTISEMENT
Sales
Birkenstocks
It had been preceded by SARS in 2002–4, H5N1 bird flu in 2004, H1N1 swine flu in
Birkenstocks
2009, MERS in 2012, Ebola in 2014–16 and Zika in 2015–16.
What stopped these outbreaks wreaking global havoc was usually one or more of
these factors: poor infectivity (MERS), a relatively low fatality rate (swine flu) or a
swift, co-ordinated international response (SARS). In other words, good luck and
Clearance
good preparation working in tandem.
In a sense, we got lucky with Covid-19, despite the fact that it caused 20 million or
Sale
more deaths across the world. The point is that the vast majority of people infected
Birkenstocks Sales
with the virus managed to recover.
Open
So we certainly can’t bank on the next pandemic being easily contained. Kate Moss, 49, arrives
in Paris with boyfriend
Imagine Disease X is as infectious as measles with the fatality rate of Ebola. Count Nikolai von
Bismarck, 36, ahead of
Somewhere in the world, it’s replicating, and sooner or later, somebody will start Fashion Week after
feeling sick. quashing split rumours
Stepping out
So why are pandemics on the increase? Well, I can assure you that we’re not simply What to expect AFTER
expecting: New mums
experiencing a random patch of bad luck.
reveal what really
matters during those
The increase in outbreaks is the price we’re having to pay for living in the modern first months - and the
ONE thing they wish
world. First, it’s increasingly connected through globalisation. Second, more and someone had told them
more people are cramming into cities, where they often come into close contact AD FEATURE
features of Disease X.
The reason why there was such a rapid global response to Covid-19 was because
frameworks had already been developed a decade earlier as part of the £100
So when Covid-19 emerged, scientists already had a prototype design that could be Sam DeRosa
MARRIES beau Shane
modified to deal with the new virus. Carlyle! Singer ties the
knot with partner of 9
knot with partner of 9
Developing appropriate vaccines in less than a year was something of a miracle. Yet years in
romantic Massachusetts
even that speed would be insufficient if the next pandemic turns out to be far more outdoor ceremony
lethal than the last.
Elle Macpherson, 59,
shows off her smooth
When I led the Vaccine Taskforce, a central feature of our approach was to build a complexion as she
makes a stylish
portfolio of different types of vaccines. In 2020, we didn’t know which, if any, format appearance at the Dior
of vaccine was going to work against Covid-19 and its variants, so we wanted to show during Paris
Fashion Week
deploy a breadth of different approaches.
Davina McCall reveals
what's REALLY inside
her fridge, her unlikely
go-to lunch and what
she eats in a day
Kourtney Kardashian's
Some vaccine formats may be suitable for large-scale production, while others may husband Travis Barker
be easier to produce in the third world. 'likes' post about how
the name Rocky is 'cute'
for their son... after
We saw this with Covid-19, where it made sense to use Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna moniker was LEAKED at
baby shower
in wealthier nations and Oxford-AstraZeneca in poorer places.
From Rage Applying to
Third, we need to address the shortcomings of current vaccines, not all of which are Shift Shock and Lazy
Girl Job to Bare
durable, easy to transport or cheap. Minimum Monday -
which workplace trends
Fourth, researchers must be encouraged to trial new technologies and approaches are here to stay?
ADVERTISING
to vaccine design, potentially leading to more effective and efficient vaccines in the
future. Lottie Moss
showcases her figure
and flashes major
Vaccines aren’t the only answer, of course. We urgently need to invest in state-of- underboob in a black
cutout bikini while
the-art systems for international surveillance of prospective virus threats.
dancing on Ibiza
getaway
Ideally, Disease X will be neutralised before it starts spreading across the globe and
Kim Novak, 90, cuts a
mutating (which it certainly will, if left unchecked). glamorous figure
alongside a serene Yoko
We also need to think again about what can be done during the period after Disease Ono, 90, on vintage
Esquire covers to
X hits Britain, and before an effective vaccine can be rolled out. celebrate magazine's
90th anniversary
In 2020, we had no experience of lockdowns, so it was painfully obvious that policy
Hailey Bieber is pretty
was made up on the hoof. No such excuse next time. in a pale pink satin mini
dress while having fun
in Paris as she
Before it even enters Britain, we need to have rehearsed our response much better
promotes her
Before it even enters Britain, we need to have rehearsed our response much better
promotes her
and more scientifically. Was it right to close schools? To lock down for long periods? bestselling Rhode
beauty line: 'Bonjour'
To ban travel? Advise people to wear masks?
Russell Brand pleads
Researchers are working on these questions, among others. But there should be no with fans to support him
financially by signing
restrictions on who can work on the data from the last pandemic — it should be up to £48 a year Rumble
made available in a central database to scientists around the world. subscription after
YouTube cut his advert
revenue
We need to go even further. One of the many tragedies of the 2020 Covid-19 saga
was that countries often retreated into silos and failed to support any serious Skincare saviours!
Shop the best Korean
international plan. It was a major failure, which cost many lives. Beauty brands
including £3 CosRx
pimple patches that
To provide vaccines at low cost, we must build biological vaccine-manufacturing
banish blemishes FAST
capacities in countries from each continent, and organise robust training. Ideally, and THAT viral snail
serum at iHerb
the countries selected would be ones with low populations.
Will Eternal EVER get
Why? Because there would be less chance of political demands to ‘vaccinate our back together? How
band are split down the
own people first’ rather than treating those most in need. The vaccine nationalism of middle over trans row
2020, one hopes, would become a thing of the past. as PR experts fear it
could be the end of any
reunion plans
This really is no time for complacency. We’ve already experienced a relatively non-
lethal pandemic, and governments are aware that the next one could be far worse. ADVERTISEMENT
The logical next step is to have a single global body responsible for our response to
Disease X. The obvious one to take up the mantle is the Coalition for Epidemic
Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), working in close conjunction with the World Health SAVE 50%
Organisation.
£40
Truly international, CEPI was launched at Davos in 2017 to develop vaccines against
future epidemics. It is currently working on a five-year plan to compress vaccine
development to 100 days and create a library of vaccines.
We will also need to fund a global budget for this body, with contributions based on
national wealth. SAVE 76%
Finally, all of them should agree to sign up to a Global Pandemic Treaty. This would £15
enable the open sharing of information among scientists and clinicians, and give
clear accountability for vaccine development and manufacturing.
The remarkable success of the scientific drive against Covid-19 shows what can be
SAVE 80%
achieved when we pull together. But next time, we need to be far better and far
faster.
£12
Adapted from The Long Shot by Kate Bingham & Tim Hames (Oneworld Publications,
£10.99). © Kate Bingham & Tim Hames 2023. To order a copy for £9.89 (offer valid to
07/10/2023; UK P&P free on orders over £25) go to mailshop.co.uk/books or call 020
3176 2937.
Share or comment on this article: The next pandemic is already coming and it Can you name all the
could kill millions more than Covid. We need to prepare for it now... writes experts supermodels on the
new Vanity Fair cover?
KATE BINGHAM and TIM HAMES
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Comments 7276
Share what you think
Click to rate 4 0
Davgav, London, United Kingdom, 7 hours ago
Basically they will once again release another man made virus to push another vaccine for their
sick minded agenda which is to make money and depopulate the world at the same time.
Click to rate 10 1
I am constantly surprised by human nature. For example, this comment from Catweazel: 'Heh,
"according to global health experts"... That'll be the same "global health experts" responsible for
foisting the greatest public health catastrophe in history on us to combat a disease little more To Mr Vegas
harmful than case of sniffles, the "cure" for which is proving infinitely more harmful for the disease,
will it? No, I don't think I'll be participating, thank you!' So a pandemic that has cost Britain 200 Min deposit £10. 18+. Play Responsibly. Full T&C
thousand deaths and an estimated 29 million deaths globally is 'a case of the sniffles'? How does
one even begin to argue with people who are so detached from reality? Does anyone have any
suggestions?
Julia Fox reveals there
'wasn't any sex' when
Click to rate 0 8
she was dating Kanye
Show More West as she shares an
Maid in Devon, Dis-, United Kingdom, 8 hours ago insight into their fling
Bruce Willis'
daughters Scout and
Tallulah pay tribute to
their 'inspirational'
stepmother Emma
Heming as she gives a
heartbreaking update
on actor's dementia
Princess Maria
Carolina and Maria
Chiara of Bourbon-Two
Sicilies hold hands as
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Duchess of Edinburgh
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Nicole Scherzinger
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of female genital
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Thomasin McKenzie
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Jean Purdy on set of
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'Chelsea on sea' residents vote to Harold looks worse-for-
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