The Know Daily - Monday 15 January 2024

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A Canadian conservation group has purchased exclusive hunting rights for part of a British Columbia rainforest in a bid to protect wildlife. The Rainforest Conservation Foundation said it would continue to buy more hunting rights in the area, with the ultimate aim of ending commercial trophy hunting in the Great Bear Rainforest altogether.

📣 Measles PSA

Health officials have urged parents to check that their children have had two doses of the MMR jab, amid a rise in measles cases across the country.

Tell me more.
There were 1,603 suspected cases of measles in England and Wales in 2023, new data from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has revealed. This is up from 735 in 2022, and just 360 the year before. 

On Friday, BBC News reported that the West Midlands is experiencing the highest number of measles cases outside of London. Public Health Scotland said it has seen “very few” cases, however.

What’s behind it?
It’s all down to vaccine hesitancy, with a low uptake of the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) jab. While uptake needs to be 95% to stop measles from spreading in the community, in 2022-23 just 84.5% of children had two doses by the time they were five, reported Sky News.

Dr Naveed Sye, a consultant in health protection for the UKHSA, told the BBC that the Covid pandemic had “stirred up a lot of issues”, with “fake news” behind the reluctance to have the MMR jab.

What should we be doing?
The UKHSA has urged parents to check that their children have had two doses of MMR, while the NHS is organising catch-up vaccination clinics in some areas.