Press briefing: morning 15 October 2014
The Prime Minister's Official Spokesperson answered questions on Ebola, Hong Kong and smoking.
Ebola
On reports that there had been a second healthcare worker infected by Ebola in Texas – the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesperson (PMOS) highlighted the effectiveness of the emergency exercises which took place over the weekend. He said the simulations had shown how the government was constantly keeping measures under review to ensure they were robust and tested in the right way.
The PMOS also pointed to Public Health England and their ongoing contact with their US counterparts – the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention - to look at any lessons that could be learnt from the US experience.
Hong Kong
When asked about demonstrations in Hong Kong – the PMOS said the government had been clear that all sides should do all they could to ensure that the demonstrations remained peaceful.
When asked if there were any plans to call in the Chinese Ambassador on this issue – the PMOS said that the Prime Minister had spoken to his Chinese counterpart when he was in London earlier in the year and the government would continue to have close contact with the Chinese government.
Smoking
When asked if there were plans to ban smoking in public parks – the PMOS said the government was clear it had no plans to do this.