Swine flu: the UK timeline

The virus has swept through the UK since April, infecting thousands of people, although most have suffered mild symptoms. Here is a timeline:

* April 24: The Health Protection Agency says it is monitoring a deadly swine flu outbreak in Mexico and the United States after more than 60 people worldwide die after contracting the virus.

* April 26: Iain and Dawn Askham, of Polmont, near Falkirk, are confirmed as the first UK cases of swine flu after returning from their honeymoon in Mexico.

* June 11: The World Health Organisation announces the swine flu outbreak is now a pandemic because its geographical spread is global.

The move means the world is in the grip of a flu outbreak on a scale not seen for more than 40 years.

* June 14: Jacqui Fleming, 38, of Glasgow, becomes the first person in the UK to die after contracting the virus.

Ms Fleming died two weeks after her son, Jack, was born 11 weeks prematurely.

The Crown Office later confirmed Ms Fleming died as a result of multi-organ failure due to influenza pneumonia (H1N1).

Jack died on June 15 but an NHS Greater Glasgow spokesman said the baby did not die from swine flu.

Ms Fleming, who was said to have had underlying health conditions, lived with her two other children - one aged 18 and one of primary school age - and her long-term partner William McCann in Carnwadric.

* June 27: A 73-year-old man from the Inverclyde area of Scotland dies at the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley after contracting swine flu.

The unnamed man, who had serious underlying health conditions, had been receiving treatment in the hospital's Intensive Care Unit for 15 days.

* June 26: Sameerah Ahmad, six, who was born with a rare life-threatening disease, dies at Birmingham's Children's Hospital after contracting swine flu.

Tests on the girl's body show she had contracted swine flu, although it is not yet known if this contributed to her death.

She was also believed to have been suffering from a condition which weakened her bone marrow and her immune system, making it difficult for her body to fight infection, an inquest heard.

* July 2: The UK has moved past the stage of containing the swine flu outbreak and into the "treatment phase", with hundreds of cases recorded every day, Health Secretary Andy Burnham tells the Commons.

Predicting a huge daily rise in new cases, Mr Burnham says: "Cases are doubling every week and on this trend we could see over 100,000 cases per day by the end of August."

* July 3: A 19-year-old man is confirmed as the first person in London to die after contracting swine flu.

The teenager, from south London, who suffered serious underlying health problems, tested positive for the virus following his death.

* July 6: A nine-year-old child is confirmed as the second person in London to die after contracting swine flu. The child, from south London, had serious underlying health problems.

* July 6: A nine-year-old girl, Asmaa Hussain, and teacher, Abdullah Patel, in his 40s, both from Dewsbury in West Yorkshire, are confirmed as having died after contracting swine flu. Both had underlying health problems and Asmaa suffered from epilepsy.

* July 9: The Government's chief medical officer, Sir Liam Donaldson, confirms that 14 people in the UK have now died after contracting swine flu. The names of some victims and where they died are kept confidential at the request of families.

* July 10: A hospital patient from Essex becomes the first person without underlying health problems to die after contracting swine flu, NHS East of England says.

* July 13: A six-year-old girl, Chloe Buckley, from north west London, is confirmed as having died after contracting swine flu. She died on Thursday July 9 at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington. A post mortem will establish if she had underlying health conditions.

* July 13: Bedfordshire GP Dr Michael Day is confirmed as having had swine flu. He died on Saturday July 11 in the Luton and Dunstable Hospital. His death will be investigated by the local coroner to determine its exact cause, a statement from NHS East of England said.