40th H1N1 swine flu death recorded in Scotland

An adult who had underlying health problems has died on Friday as a result of the H1N1 swine flu virus. This brings the total number of deaths from the virus in Scotland to 40.

The victim who contracted the virus came from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. The person is currently remaining unidentified.

Nicola Sturgeon, the current Health Secretary in Scotland, said: "People with underlying health conditions are at greater risk of complications which is why we are prioritising the vaccine for this group. We are vaccinating as soon as vaccines arrive in the country and those people who accept the invitation will be vaccinated by Christmas."

This announcement comes one day after the Scottish Government announced that healthy children between the ages of five months and six years would be getting a jab to try and prevent swine flu in the forseeable future. Around 260,000 children are to get the jab, Nicola Sturgeon said.

She announced: "The decision has been made in line with independent scientific advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation [JCVI]. It is their advice which has guided us so far in all the decisions around the vaccination programme. Advice from the JCVI is that young children are more at risk of contracting the virus and the highest rate of hospitalisations has been in the under-five age group, so that is the key consideration. However, the vast majority of young children, in common with the rest of the population, have mild symptoms and they will recover relatively quickly, but we want to ensure that young children are fully protected against the virus."