UK is 'vulnerable' to next Ebola outbreak

I found this story on the main page of the BBC News. The article was written by James Gallagher, a health editor and explains how ‘The UK is vulnerable to epidemics such as Ebola because of a gaping hole in the country's ability to manufacture vaccines, a group of MPs has warned.’

The Science and Technology Committee said the UK "lacks the capacity" to produce enough to protect people.

And they said the government's response to the Ebola outbreak was "undermined by systematic delay".

MPs praised the "heroic" efforts of the volunteers who often put their own lives on the line to tackle the epidemic.

But their report warned: "We are also concerned that, in the unlikely but possible event of a domestic outbreak, the UK lacks the capability to go further and manufacture enough vaccines to vaccinate UK citizens in an emergency.

"Existing facilities are degraded and new plants will take years to build, leaving the UK in a vulnerable position."

The concern is that should a disease such as Ebola spread around the world then countries would look after their own interests first, making it hard for the UK to get hold of vaccines.

Those concerns were echoed by the chief medical officer, Prof Dame Sally Davies, who told the committee that "we are looking at how we can try and attract companies back".

This story caught my eye as it talks about England, which is the region that I live in, meaning that the content may have an influence/impact on my self, my family and friends. This story helps to rise awareness of the situation that is not yet taking place however, may do in the near future. By doing this it allows us, the readers to get into further research about the topic as well as, think of possible solutions to it before the actual situation gets worse. The BBC explained the story more as facts rather than being bias and taking a particular side of it. This is really good as it allows the readers to be able to find out what may be necessary and come up with their own opinion and idea about it. 

'We don't want to die': What Ryanair crew member tells passengers when she's explaining why the flight is delayed for eight hours

I found this story on the front page of the Daily Mail and it has been written by Tom Wyke on 17^th January 2016.

v  Staff member told passengers that the flight to Belfast had been delayed

v  She said there was ice on the wings and 'we don't want to die'  

v  Passenger Ella Ryan videoed the shocking incident and posted online

v  Many of the passengers appear taken aback by the surprising announcement 

Passengers on board a delayed Ryanair flight were given a shock when a crew member announced they were not taking off from Glasgow due to ice on the wings and said 'we don't want to die.' 

The shocking announcement was made on board the Dublin-bound flight which was delayed for around eight hours.

Passenger Ella Ryan was so surprised by the incident and she posted a video of the moment on social media.

Ms Ryan said that delayed passengers were given various reasons for the holdup and claimed they were only given a £3.50 voucher. 

'All hell was breaking loose when a member of staff made this outrageous announcement.' she said. 

The story described how the disturbing message on the intercom 'only fuelled the already anxious and angry passengers'.

The passengers, including some children, can be heard reacting in a mixture of shock and amusement at the surprising nature of the announcement.

'We will be speaking to the crew member involved and apologise for the regrettable comment she made in the heat of the moment,' Ryanair said in a short statement.

This story caught my eye as Ryanair is an airline that I very often fly with and therefore, I was interested to see what has been said about them in the news as it could have had an effect on me. I personally think, that it was very wrong of the flight attendant to say this to the passengers as their job is to make sure everyone is safe and their journey is as relaxing and pleasant as possible, and with what has been done it would make them feel frightened and unsure of what is going on around them. In addition, now as this has been done, and the fact that it is spread around in the news, the company may start to loose out on customers who may feel as if they don't want the same thing to happen to them as well and so they will much rather purchase the same service from another airline. 

Pope Francis claims he is a ‘sinner in God’s mercy’ who could have ended up in jail and reveals one of his nieces has married a divorced man

•    Pope Francis reveals his 'special relationship' with prisoners in new book 

•    He reveals how the Catholic Church should be more welcoming of gays 

•    Book, which includes a series of interviews, to be published in 86 countries

I found this story on the main news page of the DailyMail. It was written by KATIE LOUISE DAVIES FOR MAILONLINE on the 10^th of January 2016.

The story describes how Pope Francis has described himself as a 'sinner' in need of God's mercy, as he revealed how the Roman Catholic's debates over divorce have impacted on his own family. 

In the first book of his papacy, the Pope - a frequent visitor to prisons - told how he could have been in jail if he was wasn't a pontiff and refers to his 'special relationship' with convicts. 

The revelation came as he declared one of his nieces had married a divorced man in the book The Name of God is Mercy.

In extracts, Francis said: 'I have always been very much attached to them, precisely because of the awareness that I have of being a sinner.'

'Every time I cross the doorway of a prison, I always ask myself, "Why are they are here, and not me?" I should be here, I should deserve to be here. Their fall could have been mine. I don't feel superior to those in front of me.' 

The book will be published on Tuesday in 86 countries and compromises a series of interviews, some of them highly personal, with the 79-year-old Argentine-born pope.

I found this story very interesting to read and analyse for this weeks weekly news. This is because I myself am a catholic and so it interest me to see how the held views are changing now and in a way adapting more to today's society and the way that it is developing. I think that the Pope has made a very good decision to address the above stated issues as they affect millions of people worldwide now and so the idea that he shows interest in them and involves his personal believes will show people that he cares for them and their good.