{"id":291872,"date":"2023-12-19T10:32:39","date_gmt":"2023-12-19T09:32:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=291872"},"modified":"2023-12-19T10:32:42","modified_gmt":"2023-12-19T09:32:42","slug":"uk-health-security-agency-boss-criticised-for-tropical-disease-claims","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=291872","title":{"rendered":"UK Health Security Agency boss criticised for tropical disease claims"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"723\" height=\"381\" data-attachment-id=\"291873\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?attachment_id=291873\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-441.png?fit=1500%2C790&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1500,790\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"image-441\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-441.png?fit=723%2C381&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-441.png?resize=723%2C381&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-291873\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-441.png?resize=1024%2C539&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-441.png?resize=300%2C158&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-441.png?resize=768%2C404&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-441.png?resize=1200%2C632&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-441.png?w=1500&amp;ssl=1 1500w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-441.png?w=1446&amp;ssl=1 1446w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 723px) 100vw, 723px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">From <a href=\"https:\/\/www.netzerowatch.com\/\">Net Zero Watch<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A leading expert in mosquito-borne diseases is fiercely critical of Professor Dame Jenny Harries, head of the UK Health Security Agency, calling her recent pronouncements on mosquito-transmitted diseases \u201centirely fictional\u201d and \u201cshameless\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Professor Harries was&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thetimes.co.uk\/article\/tropical-diseases-common-in-uk-by-2040-rtxw97t8c#Echobox=1702288009\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">quoted in the media<\/a>&nbsp;as saying that rising temperatures will make such diseases common in the UK by 2040 because the Asian Tiger Mosquito \u2013 which can transmit dengue, chikungunya, zika, yellow fever and other viral diseases \u2013 will become established throughout Britain. Dengue will eventually become endemic in London, it is claimed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But Professor Paul Reiter, retired professor of Insects and Infectious Diseases at the Pasteur Institute in Paris, and a leading specialist in this field, has ridiculed her claims:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe natural range of the Tiger mosquito, an Asian species, extends from the tropics to regions where mean January temperatures are around&nbsp;<em>minus<\/em>&nbsp;ten degrees Celsius. Northern strains are able to survive because in late summer, as days grow shorter, the eggs they lay are dormant and remain unhatched until spring arrives\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Since the late 1970s, there has been rapid global spread of the Tiger mosquito, to the United States, Latin America, Europe and several African countries, probably mainly via the global trade in used tyres. Professor Reiter says that it is beyond doubt that this has&nbsp;<em>nothing<\/em>&nbsp;to do with temperature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Professor Reiter has also lambasted fearmongering about the return of malaria, noting that this was once a major cause of death in many parts of England, even during the period that climatologists call the Little Ice Age:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Shakespeare mentions malaria \u2013 \u201cthe ague\u201d \u2013 thirteen times, so it was clearly once common here. The disease began to decline \u2013 for a multitude of reasons \u2013 in the mid-nineteenth century, despite the upward trend in global temperatures.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Net Zero Watch director Andrew Montford said:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is not the first time we have seen the Civil Service misleading the public in this way. Science is being misused to generate fear and to \u201cnudge\u201d us in a desired direction. This kind of shameful disinformation brings the Civil Service into disrepute.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A leading expert in mosquito-borne diseases is fiercely critical of Professor Dame Jenny Harries, head of the UK Health Security Agency, calling her recent pronouncements on mosquito-transmitted diseases \u201centirely fictional\u201d and \u201cshameless\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":291873,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[691825467,691825465,691825466],"class_list":["post-291872","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-asian-tiger-mosquito","tag-mosquito-borne-diseases","tag-uk-by-2040","fallback-thumbnail"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-441.png?fit=1500%2C790&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-1dVC","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":379927,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=379927","url_meta":{"origin":291872,"position":0},"title":"Claim: Climate Change Could Bring Mosquito Diseases to Britain","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"05\/25\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Malaria was the scourge of early 1600s Britain, during the Little Ice Age, but today\u2019s scientists think insect borne diseases need a warm climate.","rel":"","context":"In \"Climate Alarmists\"","block_context":{"text":"Climate Alarmists","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=climate-alarmists"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0RS2130RMN7CulexquinquefasciatusAdults001116.9.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0RS2130RMN7CulexquinquefasciatusAdults001116.9.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0RS2130RMN7CulexquinquefasciatusAdults001116.9.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0RS2130RMN7CulexquinquefasciatusAdults001116.9.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0RS2130RMN7CulexquinquefasciatusAdults001116.9.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":290996,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=290996","url_meta":{"origin":291872,"position":1},"title":"Sky\u2019s Dengue Fever\u00a0Lies","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"12\/12\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"In Europe, the mosquito is now well established in Italy and southern France. But the idea that Britain will soon have the same climate as the south of France is absurd.","rel":"","context":"In \"Asian tiger mosquitoes\"","block_context":{"text":"Asian tiger mosquitoes","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=asian-tiger-mosquitoes"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0d60a0370-04c2-4232-8219-36b443ceeacd-Asian_Tiger_Mosquito.webp?fit=1200%2C677&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0d60a0370-04c2-4232-8219-36b443ceeacd-Asian_Tiger_Mosquito.webp?fit=1200%2C677&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0d60a0370-04c2-4232-8219-36b443ceeacd-Asian_Tiger_Mosquito.webp?fit=1200%2C677&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0d60a0370-04c2-4232-8219-36b443ceeacd-Asian_Tiger_Mosquito.webp?fit=1200%2C677&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/0d60a0370-04c2-4232-8219-36b443ceeacd-Asian_Tiger_Mosquito.webp?fit=1200%2C677&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":380340,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=380340","url_meta":{"origin":291872,"position":2},"title":"The Guardian Is Lying About Mosquito-Borne Diseases in the UK","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"05\/27\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"In a May 23 article \u201cClimate change could bring insect-borne tropical diseases to UK, scientists warn,\u201d The Guardian asserts that rising global temperatures are making Britain more hospitable to tropical mosquito-borne diseases like dengue, West Nile virus, and chikungunya. This claim is a lie. England\u2019s climate has been suitable for\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Climate change\"","block_context":{"text":"Climate change","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=climate-change"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0ChatGPT-Image-27.-Mai-2025-19_07_49.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0ChatGPT-Image-27.-Mai-2025-19_07_49.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0ChatGPT-Image-27.-Mai-2025-19_07_49.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0ChatGPT-Image-27.-Mai-2025-19_07_49.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0ChatGPT-Image-27.-Mai-2025-19_07_49.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":379889,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=379889","url_meta":{"origin":291872,"position":3},"title":"West Nile Virus Lie\u00a0Exposed","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"05\/25\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Despite its deceptive title, the West Nile Virus does not come from the Nile, although apparently the first recorded case was in Uganda in 1937.","rel":"","context":"In \"Climate change\"","block_context":{"text":"Climate change","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=climate-change"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0RS2130RMN7CulexquinquefasciatusAdults001116.9.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0RS2130RMN7CulexquinquefasciatusAdults001116.9.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0RS2130RMN7CulexquinquefasciatusAdults001116.9.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0RS2130RMN7CulexquinquefasciatusAdults001116.9.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0RS2130RMN7CulexquinquefasciatusAdults001116.9.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":340791,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=340791","url_meta":{"origin":291872,"position":4},"title":"Telegraph Spread Fake Disease\u00a0Scare","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"08\/27\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"He goes on to list main threat as the dengue transmitting Tiger Mosquito. Proper scientists would have told him that the spread of this charmer has nothing to do with \u201cclimate change\u201d, as it has always been able to thrive in temperate climates, such as ours. Its spread has been\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Climate change\"","block_context":{"text":"Climate change","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=climate-change"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/048916552681_1ef492c9a3_b.jpg?fit=1024%2C827&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/048916552681_1ef492c9a3_b.jpg?fit=1024%2C827&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/048916552681_1ef492c9a3_b.jpg?fit=1024%2C827&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/048916552681_1ef492c9a3_b.jpg?fit=1024%2C827&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":380241,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=380241","url_meta":{"origin":291872,"position":5},"title":"Duane Gubler On Dengue\u00a0Fever","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"05\/27\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Further to my post on the West Nile virus the other day, it is worth reading Prof Duane Gubler\u2019s analysis of mosquito borne diseases a few years ago.","rel":"","context":"In \"disciplined public health practices\"","block_context":{"text":"disciplined public health practices","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=disciplined-public-health-practices"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0ChatGPT-Image-27.-Mai-2025-09_12_36.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0ChatGPT-Image-27.-Mai-2025-09_12_36.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0ChatGPT-Image-27.-Mai-2025-09_12_36.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0ChatGPT-Image-27.-Mai-2025-09_12_36.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0ChatGPT-Image-27.-Mai-2025-09_12_36.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/291872","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/121246920"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=291872"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/291872\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":291875,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/291872\/revisions\/291875"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/291873"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=291872"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=291872"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=291872"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}