It isn't an airborne disease, so it's not quite as simple as 'a sneeze is all it takes'. Handwashing is all it takes to limit it - there's a reason it hasn't spread to the West en masse already through transport, as something like smallpox would have done by now.

It is true that it does not pose a major threat to the west at the moment. As long as it does not mutate into a form that can be passed on more easily (and, as far as I understand it, that is unlikely), it will almost certainly be limited to isolated cases which are treatable.

However, the epidemic in Sierra Leone shows the value of overseas aid. There was a Tory idiot on the radio last week saying that the aid budget should be for emergencies only. We are now seeing the consequences of that attitude. Most of the reasons for its rapid spread are to do with lack of money. That is why, for example, needles are reused without being sterilised. Better facilities would not have prevented the outbreak altogether but it may well have fizzled out in the same way as previous outbreaks.

It is to the credit of this government (and I don't say that very often) that they have maintained the aid budget, one of the few promises Cameron has actually kept.

The government seems to be in total panic mode with the sudden announcement this afternoon of immediate implementation of airport/border screenings at Heathrow/Gatwick and Eurotunnel in order to capture those travelling from at risk nations who may be infected. This despite the fact that there are ZERO direct flights from Sierra Leone and Liberia, there is difficulty in determining which passengers have travelled from these counties, and that the incubation period can be up to 21 days during which the infected person will show absolutely no signs of ebola whatsoever.

It seems like an utterly pointless exercise brought in to appease Daily Mail readers, and serves only to fuel more panic and hype to what is currently a catastrophe in W Africa only.

That's a heartbreaking film but one that everybody should see.

The film mentions the fact that a lot of schools are closed but doesn't spell out just how serious this is. There are many countries where, often thanks to aid money from the UK and elsewhere, the number of girls going to school has increased massively. In those countries the number of girls under 16 getting pregnant has plummeted. Put simply, education makes them more ambitious and encourages them to think beyond motherhood. In Sierra Leone the number of teenage pregnancies is already rising rapidly following the closure of the schools.

Because of Ebola many families are really struggling. As the film showed many families have seen all their belongings destroyed and they are being ostracised. Therefore they are finding it hard to feed themselves. The last thing they need is a new baby but that is what many families are faced with. Even when the Ebola outbreak is over the affected countries are going to struggle to recover.