Co-ordinated response demanded
Health ministers from EU countries were yesterday (April 30) meeting in Luxembourg to discuss a co-ordinated response to the outbreak of swine flu.
The minister ere expected to discuss a call by the French health minister Roselyne Bachelot to ban on air travel between Europe and Mexico where the disease first broke out.
But it was unclear whether the EU has the power to order airlines not to fly to Mexico.
A spokesman for the UK Department for Transport said it was a matter for individual airlines.
BA, Air France KLM, Iberia and Lufthansa were all operating normal services to the Central American country.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) said airlines were "prepared for the heightened level of alert" after the World Health Organisation (WHO) had upgraded to Level 5 its assessment of the risk of a pandemic from the flu.
WHO has advised against a blanket ban on travel to Mexico or the closing of its borders.
Giovanni Bisignani, IATA's director general and ceo, said: "People getting on planes should be reassured of two things.
"First, even under normal circumstances, airlines have equipment and measures in place to keep the cabin environment safe.
"Secondly, the years of planning for the possibility of avian influenza have prepared the industry to deal efficiently with the unfolding situation by following the recommendations of WHO,
While some companies have stopped business travel to Mexico, most were carrying on but taking note of health advice from their governments.
Tour operators have cancelled dozens of flights and holidays to the region.
The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office is "advising against all but essential travel to Mexico."
Before the meeting of health ministers, Ms Androulla Vassilliou, the EU's health commissioner, warned against panicking over the outbreak.
Ms Vassilliou, who called for a ban on travel to Mexico and the US earlier in the week, said:"We have to exercise vigilance, we should not panic, we have to be prepared."
160 people have died from swine flu, all but one, a child in Texas, in Mexico.
There have been confirmed cases in many other countries among them Spain, the UK, Germany, Austria, Canada, New Zealand and Israel.
www.iata.org www.fco.gov.uk www.who.int http://ec.europa.eu