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The UK government is closely monitoring the spread of the Ebola virus in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea. This page will be updated regularly. 

An Ebola outbreak was confirmed in Guinea in March 2014 and quickly spread to Liberia.

Ebola haemorrhagic fever is a rare but severe disease caused by the Ebola virus. Like HIV, Ebola is highly transmissible by direct contact with organs or bodily fluids of living or dead infected persons and animals.

The UK government is closely monitoring the outbreak in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea. This is the largest outbreak of the Ebola virus in recent times and there are no reports of British citizens being infected.

Should I be worried about this outbreak?

This is not an issue that affects the UK directly. We have experienced scientists and doctors – the Royal Free Infectious Disease Unit, the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine – and a lot of experience of dealing with dangerous diseases. The risk of this disease spreading fast in the UK is much lower because of that.

The UK government is taking precautionary measures and looking at capability but is confident that the UK has experienced people who are ready to deal with anything if it were to arrive here.

Read the latest assessment of the outbreak in West Africa.

Following a meeting of government committee COBR, Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said:

We’ve looked at how we are co-ordinating with our French and American colleagues under the World Health Organisation; we’ve considered what additional measures the UK could take to help control the outbreak in West Africa; and we’ve also looked at what measures we need to put in place on a precautionary basis in case any UK nationals in West Africa should become affected by the disease.

We do not, at the moment, think this is an issue that affects the UK directly.

Travel advice

Travellers to Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea are advised to follow the health advice issued by the National Travel Health Network and Centre.

Get the latest travel advice for Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea.

Government actions to help affected countries

In Liberia and Sierra Leone, the Department for International Development is supporting agencies on the ground to help ensure that new cases are identified quickly and given the appropriate health care.

This includes working with the World Health Organization (WHO) to train health workers and provide the supplies they need to tackle the outbreak.

In Sierra Leone, the UK is helping to improve the national response to the outbreak, including support for radio messaging on Ebola prevention and control in affected districts.

In Liberia, the UK has provided chlorine and other materials for hygiene and sanitising and training in their appropriate use.

Other organisations helping to contain the outbreak

International agencies such as Médecins Sans Frontières, UNICEF, WHO, the UN Population Fund, USAID and the Red Cross have all been on the ground helping the health services of the countries affected. The international community has contributed more than £2 million in aid, including £300,000 from the EU.

Get the latest advice and information if you are a humanitarian aid worker.

On 2 and 3 July WHO convened a meeting in Accra to coordinate regional activity and develop an Ebola virus response strategy. The UK government is supporting this process