Trial adjourned as witness may have caught monkeypox

A TRIAL witness thought to have the monkeypox virus forced the adjournment of a court case yesterday.

The trial at Inverness Sheriff Court has been temporarily suspended until July while the person involved is tested for the disease.

It comes after Scotland’s first monkeypox patient was confirmed by Public Health Scotland on Monday.

The defendant’s solicitor raised a motion to adjourn with fiscal depute Karen Poke before the trial started yesterday.

According to the latest figures from the UK Health Security Agency, there are 78 recorded cases of the condition across the UK. A spokesman for the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service told STV News: ‘The case has been adjourned today due to the crown witness being absent, due to a suspected case of monkeypox.’

Meanwhile, Public Health Scotland said it would not be appropriate to comment on the case affecting the trial in Inverness.

A statement said: ‘In line with national protocols, Public Health Scotland is working with NHS Boards and wider partners to investigate a small number of potential cases of monkeypox.’

The development comes as it emerged monkeypox patients will be told to keep their distance from family pets in official guidance to be issued later this week.

The advice from the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) will warn of a potential risk of human to animal transmission.

European health officials have expressed concerns that animals on the continent could become permanent reservoirs of the disease if it is allowed to make the jump.

This would increase the odds of it becoming ‘endemic in Europe’, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said on Monday.

Defra is drawing up guidelines in an attempt to limit the risk of monkeypox patients infecting cats, dogs, rabbits and rats.

There are also fears infected patients could contaminate their pet’s fur and allow it to be passed on to others in their household when petting.

Among the 78 cases in the UK, 77 have been identified in England and one in Scotland.

As of May 24, no cases had been identified in Wales or Northern Ireland.

The Government has ordered 20,000 more doses of smallpox vaccine, which is being used to treat those infected with monkeypox and their contacts.

Britain has 5,000 doses of Imvanex, although 1,000 have already been distributed.

Officials are confident the virus will not grow exponentially like Covid.

‘Small number of potential cases’