New cases of swine flu fall in England

The number of new cases of the H1N1 virus (swine flu) in England fell by nearly a quarter in the last week.

There were 64,000 new cases in the last week, a 24 per cent decrease on the previous seven days, but the figures are likely to have been affected by half term in the nation’s schools.

Chief medical officer Sir Liam Donaldson said that cases may have dropped because children were at home, adding they could rise now children are back in school.

The number of deaths in the UK from swine flu reached 182 this week.

Sir Liam said: “We still can’t interpret these figures. It could be the half-term effect.”

Children were once again more likely to have the virus than any other age group and, as a result it was predicted that much like the summer holidays, half-term would have an effect on the figures.