Mpox virus latest: UK prepares vaccines and pledges £3.1m to Congo as Thailand suspects first case

A £3.1 million UK government package to tackle mpox will “ultimately benefit us all”, the Africa minister has said.

On a visit to the Institut National de Recherche Biomedicale in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lord Collins of Highbury pledged money to prevent the spread of the disease, which was previously known as monkeypox.

The UK is preparing for potential cases of the new strain of mpox after Europe recorded its first case of the more deadly variant last week in Sweden .

Health officials said plans are under way to tackle a possible outbreak in the country ensuring healthcare workers are aware of the symptoms and that rapid tests are available.

But European health authorities have ruled out imposing border controls as the risk of a global virus outbreak is still considered “low”.

Thailand reported a suspected first case of a new, more dangerous strain of mpox in a European traveller.

In Argentina , a cargo ship was quarantined over the first suspected case of mpox on the vessel, after one of its crew members showed “ cyst-like skin lesions , the health ministry said.

A public health emergency was declared by the World Health Organisation ( WHO ) over a new outbreak of mpox in several African nations , with at least three cases now reported outside of the continent .