Owner of Chemistry nightclub at centre of meningitis outbreak pens appeal urging Labour to ramp up vaccines

"I am writing because two young people are dead, several more are critically ill, two of our team are in hospital, and a community of tens of thousands of students and residents is living in genuine fear," Mrs Jones-Roberts wrote.

The UK Health Security Agency has confirmed 15 cases of meningococcal disease, with a further 12 notifications currently under examination.

At least ten infections have been traced directly to Club Chemistry, a popular venue among University of Kent students situated in Canterbury.

Medical practitioners nationwide have received guidance to prescribe antibiotics to anyone who attended the establishment between 5 and 7 March.

Mrs Jones-Roberts previously disclosed to GB News that she was initially startled when health officials reached out through Instagram to alert her about the outbreak.

"Actually, I think it was quite intelligent," she reflected on the unconventional approach. "It was somebody thinking on their feet, it was late afternoon on Sunday."

She noted that a conventional email might have gone unread until the following Monday.

The outbreak has extended beyond Kent's boundaries, affecting pupils at four schools in the county and one student at a London university who has been definitively connected to the cluster.

Mrs Jones-Roberts identified what she termed "the core problem" as a fundamental gap in vaccine coverage affecting an entire generation.

The MenB vaccine became part of the routine NHS schedule in 2015, meaning current university students and sixth formers in affected areas such as Faversham and Ashford were simply too old to receive it.

"They were not missed through any failure of their own, or their parents, or their GPs. They were missed by timing," she wrote.

This has left young adults without protection against Britain's most prevalent meningococcal strain, precisely as they congregate in high-risk environments including university halls, nightclubs and shared accommodation.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation had previously determined that a catch-up programme would not be cost-effective, a calculation Mrs Jones-Roberts urged the Government to reconsider in light of the current tragedy.

Mrs Jones-Roberts outlined four specific demands in her correspondence with Downing Street.

She called first for the vaccination programme to be extended immediately beyond the University of Kent halls of residence to encompass all Canterbury residents and students, including those at further education colleges, sixth forms and private accommodation.

Her second request was for an urgent national catch-up programme targeting all unvaccinated young people between the ages of 10 and 25.

Thirdly, she demanded government intervention against what she described as "price gouging" in the private vaccine market, where pharmacies are reportedly charging hundreds of pounds per dose to desperate parents.

"This is unconscionable and is actively undermining public health," she added.

Finally, she proposed that nightlife venues serving the unvaccinated cohort be integrated into outbreak early-warning systems.

Mrs Jones-Roberts stressed that she had cooperated fully with the UK Health Security Agency from the moment they made contact.

She shut Club Chemistry voluntarily without any official directive, stating that the welfare of young patrons outweighed any commercial considerations.

"I do not raise this to seek credit," she explained. "I raise it because I believe the relationship between public health authorities and private venue operators during outbreaks deserves to be better structured, with clearer lines of communication, so that future responses can be faster."

The nightclub owner acknowledged wrestling with whether to raise policy matters during an active crisis, but concluded that the window for meaningful change would not remain open indefinitely.

"The policy gap that left an entire generation unvaccinated was known and documented before this week," she wrote. "I feel a responsibility to say so clearly, while the country is paying attention."

The targeted meningitis B vaccine rollout, which had previously only been offered to 5000 students living on campus at the University of Kent, will now be expanded to anyone who was previously offered an antibiotic, including students at Canterbury Christ Church University and sixth form students at four schools in Kent, where suspected or confirmed cases have been reported.

Wes Streeting said anybody who has attended Club Chemistry in Canterbury from the 5th of March onwards will now be told to come forward for vaccination and antibiotics, as health chiefs continue their efforts to contain this Meningitis outbreak.

While the vaccine has yet to be offered to all Canterbury residents, the Health Secretary said that the government may "well expand eligibility in the coming few days".