Experts calm UK Sars fears

Medical experts in Britain have moved to calm growing fears about the spread of the potentially deadly Sars virus.

The message came as China sacked health minister Zhang Wenkang after 18 new deaths and 402 more cases were announced, taking the country's death toll to 88 and its caseload to more than 1,800.

Six cases of Sars - severe acute respiratory syndrome - have been identified in the UK, with all but one if the victims now released from hospital.

But a spokeswoman for the Government's Health Protection Agency (HPA) insisted that the chances of contracting Sars in this country was "extremely low".

Since the Sars outbreak began there have been at least 3,000 cases, most in south east Asia, and more than 185 people have died.

Yesterday, the HPA added Beijing and the greater Toronto area to its list of potentially contagious areas.

The affected areas list now includes: Beijing, the greater Toronto area, Hong Kong, Singapore, Hanoi in Vietnam and the Chinese provinces of Shanxi and Guangdong.

The Canadian city is one of the first to suffer a "community outbreak", where it is believed the disease has been spread by people coming into contact with the virus at home or work, rather than contracting it in hospital.

Professor Angus Nicoll, director of the Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre at the HPA, said he was confident Britain could cope with the virus.

"We are fearful because of the experience of our colleagues in Toronto, Hanoi and Hong Kong," he said.

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