Good Morning Britain ground to a halt to issue an urgent public health alert after the deadly meningitis outbreak in the heart of Kent. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) issued the alert as a vaccination programme targeting approximately 5,000 students at the University of Kent, following an outbreak thought to have originated at a nightclub in Canterbury. At the time of writing this article, the deadly disease has claimed the lives of two people, with reports emerging that the disease has spread to a second university in Kent.

Canterbury Christ Church University revealed that the UKHSA had confirmed a case of meningitis in one of its students. It was earlier confirmed that the total number of confirmed cases and suspected cases has risen to 20, with two people dead.

It comes after Susanna Reid and Ed Balls welcomed Labour's Wes Streeting onto the show on Wednesday (March 18), where they grilled him about the government's plans to protect residents in Kent from the deadly disease.

When asked if the Government had plans to introduce a national vaccine for young adults, the Health Secretary admitted: "We're going to approach that in an evidence-based way, I don't want to do it in a knee-jerk way.

"We have been proactive in terms of what we're standing up for today for the targeted vaccine programme, but it's extremely unusual to stand up this kind of vaccine campaign in such a short space of time following the initial case on Friday night (March 13) and then the cluster on Saturday (March 14). We've done that as a precautionary measure."

The politician went on to share some advice to students studying in Kent as they approach exam season. He warned: "If you're one of the university students sitting your exam this week, or if you're at one of the schools in the area, you should still go to school, you should still go to college, you should still go to university. The risk is very low.

"In terms of accessing antibiotics, seek medical help and advice. The targeted vaccination campaign is targeted at 5,000 students in halls and residences at the University of Kent.

"There may be other students, at the University of Kent and at Canterbury Christ College and the other schools and colleges, who will be thinking, 'Do I need the vaccine at this stage?' That's not what we're saying, but we are looking at whether it will be right to expand."