More transparency urged in the handling of the flu pandemics, as makers defend themselves on allegations of manipulating WHO

'The world has been frightened by a serious of health scares - SARS, Avian Flu and now Swine Flu,' commented UK Member of the European Parliament Paul Flynn, who was appointed to prepare a PACE (the Committee on Social, Health and Family Affairs of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe) report on this subject, following allegations that the pharmaceutical industry had put pressure on the World Health Organization in its classification of the disease as a pandemic (The Pharma Letters passim).

Speaking at a public hearing in Strasburg yesterday, he continued: 'We now know, in hindsight, that the fears that were aroused do not appear to be justified. So we want to know how decisions on pandemics are taken ' are they taken on the best scientific, epidemiological evidence, or are they influenced by other interests? That is the basis of this complaint. With H1N1, did the WHO, once again, frighten the world without any substantial evidence?' And, in a statement from the PACE, more transparency in the handling of future H1N1 flu pandemics was urged.

Wolfgang Wodarg, medical expert specializing in epidemiology and former Chairman of the PACE Sub-committee on Health who instigated the debate, told the hearing: 'We were told this was a flu which would threaten humanity, and millions would fall ill. This is why millions of dollars of medications were bought. The WHO basically held the trigger for the pandemic preparedness plans; they had a key role to play in deciding on the pandemic. Around $18 billion was spent on this pandemic worldwide.'