Labour MEP calls for 'urgent EU action' over Ebola spread

The European Union should take all necessary steps to find a cure for the deadly Ebola virus before it hits Europe, Labour MEP Marlene Mizzi said.

“If Europe doesn’t start combatting it from now, thousands more people will die of this disease,” Mizzi said. “We shouldn’t wait for the virus to reach Europe before we do something about it.”

Mizzi was addressing a plenary session in Strasbourg that was called to discuss how the EU should respond to the spread of Ebola.

The Ebola virus has killed over 2,500 people this year, the World Health Organisation said. The virus causes fever and uncontrolled bleeding. This recent outbreak was first confirmed in Guinea back in March but it ahs since spread across Liberia and Sierra Leone. A handful of Ebola deaths have also been recorded in Nigeria, Senegal and Congo. 

Mizzi urged the European Commissioners to organize an extraordinary ministerial meeting to prepare for the possibility of Ebola reaching Europe.  The S&D politicial group, which Mizzi is a part of, put forward a motion for a resolution on the EU’s response to Ebola. A vote will be taken on it on 18 September.