Cumbria is 'well prepared' for coronavirus cases

Contingency plans to deal with the Coronavirus outbreak are being drawn up by Cumbria Country Council.

There haven't been any confirmed cases of the virus in the county but the local authority says they're in close contact with the Public Health England.

It comes as the UK government published a "coronavirus action plan" which includes several emergency measures that could be enacted if the virus becomes a pandemic.

Colin Cox, the Director of Public Health at Cumbria County Council: "Cumbria is very well prepared for the initial phases of the virus. If we get the sort of levels of Covid-19 that we're seeing elsewhere in the country, we're absolutely very well prepared for this.

"Obviously, if it gets much bigger it will be a challenging situation for all organisations - not just in Cumbria - but across the whole country."

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"Cumbria's been planning for this sort of thing for quite a long time, mainly around flu pandemics", Mr Cox said.

"We have got a contingency plan in place for the flu pandemics and we're effectively just utilising that to co-ordinate our response for Covid-19 as well.

"Of course we still don't quite know what's happening, there are still no cases in Cumbria so what actually happens over the coming weeks and months will depend on how things pan out in real life.

"But I think what you can be reassured by is that all the organisations in Cumbria are working together to make sure that we are as prepared for this as we can be."

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As of Tuesday morning, the number of coronavirus cases in the UK had risen to 51, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said in a House of Commons address.