Government invests £1 billion in health protection as new pandemic strategy replaces outdated 2011 plan

The UK Government has unveiled a sweeping new Pandemic Preparedness Strategy backed by approximately £1 billion of investment in health protection, replacing a 15-year-old influenza-focused plan with measures designed to address a far broader range of pathogenic threats.

Published on 25 March by the Department of Health and Social Care, the strategy arrives alongside the Government's formal response to the Covid-19 Inquiry Module 2 report, which examined core political and administrative decision-making during the pandemic. Together, the documents represent what Security Minister Dan Jarvis described as a "major improvement" in the UK's approach to pandemic preparedness.

The investment will be directed towards enhancing access to essential vaccines and therapeutics, improving pandemic surveillance systems, and expanding the country's capacity to deploy mass testing. PPE stockpiles will continue to be replenished with a variety of products and sizes, while chemicals and equipment needed for testing will be built up further to guard against supply chain disruptions in the early stages of a future pandemic.

Key measures in the strategy

• An 'All Pandemic Hazards Bill' will be drafted to ensure the Government has legislative options ready to deploy in response to a range of pathogens
• The UK Health Security Agency will build new services to manage large-scale testing, contact tracing and other public health response measures
• Departmental pandemic response plans will be reviewed to ensure government services and critical national infrastructure can be maintained during a pandemic
• Data requirements for decision-making will be overhauled to ensure information is available, transparent and can be shared quickly between organisations and with the public
• A suite of prepared options for community protection measures will support swifter decision-making to keep people safe

The strategy has been directly informed by Exercise Pegasus, described as the largest pandemic exercise in UK history, which took place in autumn 2025. The exercise saw every government department, the devolved governments, arms-length bodies, local resilience forums and external stakeholders respond to the spread of a simulated pathogen over several weeks.

Minister of Health for Public Health and Prevention, Sharon Hodgson, said the strategy represented "a serious, long-term commitment to protecting the public from future health threats". She added: "We learnt hard lessons from Covid-19, and it is our responsibility to act on them."

The new plan replaces the previous Pandemic Influenza Strategy published in 2011, which was widely criticised during the Covid-19 Inquiry for its narrow focus on influenza and failure to anticipate the kind of respiratory pandemic that ultimately struck in 2020. The updated strategy builds on wider reforms being pursued through the 10 Year Health Plan.

Alongside the strategy, the Government highlighted steps already taken to strengthen the vaccine supply chain, including a ten-year partnership with Moderna. The pharmaceutical company has built what officials describe as a state-of-the-art innovation and technology laboratory in Oxfordshire, producing British-made vaccines.

Susan Hopkins, Chief Executive of the UK Health Security Agency, said the strategy "underlines a shared commitment across Government to continue building our resilience capabilities", adding that her organisation would continue developing capabilities in diagnostics, surveillance, vaccine development and testing.

The Government's response to the Covid-19 Inquiry Module 2 report details how departments have strengthened decision-making processes, improved protections for vulnerable groups, and enhanced cooperation with devolved governments. Changes include improvements to the standards and selection process for SAGE, the Government's team of scientific advisers, and a comprehensive review of the UK's crisis response framework. Further reforms will place vulnerable groups at the centre of emergency planning and provide devolved administrations with access to relevant emergency briefings.