News and communications

The Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) is leading on the creation of the United Kingdom Microbial Forensics Consortium (UKMFC).

• Updated: 15 May 2024

Barriers to Research working group calls for written evidence about barriers to legitimate research for controlled drugs, excluding synthetic cannabinoids.

• Updated: 22 April 2021

100,000 people will be sent self-testing kits to determine if they are currently infected.

• Updated: 29 April 2020

20,000 households in England are being contacted to take part in the first wave of a major new government study to track coronavirus (COVID-19) in the general population.

• Updated: 23 April 2020

The second mega-lab at Alderley Park in Cheshire has begun to test thousands of patient samples a day for coronavirus.

• Updated: 20 April 2020

Statement from Professor John Newton, national coordinator of the UK coronavirus (COVID-19) testing programme, warning against the purchase of unapproved antibody testing kits.

• Updated: 18 April 2020

Access to testing for those with symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19) will be extended across England to include additional frontline workers and symptomatic members of their household.

• Updated: 17 April 2020

All care home residents and social care staff with coronavirus (COVID-19) symptoms will be tested as capacity is built up, the government is announcing today.

• Updated: 15 April 2020

Pharmaceutical giants and diagnostic companies join forces on plans to roll out millions of coronavirus (COVID-19) tests.

• Updated: 8 April 2020

New 5-pillar plan outlines national effort to increase testing to 100,000 a day across the UK

• Updated: 2 April 2020

The projects will be awarded the funds from BIRAX, a £10 million programme to support cutting edge UK-Israeli research.

• Updated: 29 October 2019

A paper published in the journal 'Science' demonstrates the impact of portable sequencing on the public health response early in Nigerian Lassa fever outbreak.

• Updated: 4 January 2019

Newsletter from AMRHAI, the national reference laboratory responsible for the detection and investigation of antibiotic resistance.

• Updated: 26 October 2018

PHE and the FSA are working together to inform the public about the measures they can take to avoid infection with Salmonella Typhimurium.

• Updated: 19 October 2018

The NHS Genomic Medicine Service is the first national genomic healthcare service in the world and will allow faster diagnosis and personalised care.

• Updated: 2 October 2018

A new study by Public Health England, the University of Oxford and others reveals we can better predict a patient’s response to TB treatments.

• Updated: 26 September 2018

This document explains how a new drug chart improved antimicrobial stewardship at the Royal Free Hospital.

• Updated: 10 December 2015

There is a high burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) including mental health in the Indian population.

• Updated: 4 November 2014

First published during the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

13 partnerships between universities and Public Health England will share funding worth £47.5 million for health protection research.

• Updated: 20 December 2013

First published during the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

Guidance on direct referral by GPs to specific diagnostic tests for the assessment of particular symptoms where cancer may be suspected but the urgent GP referral (two week wait) process is not applicable, has been published.

• Updated: 12 April 2012

First published during the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government