Steve Walsh picked up coronavirus during a trip to Singapore

The businessman who was at the centre of the UK outbreak of coronavirus is no longer contagious, health chiefs have said.

Steve Walsh is now being discharged from hospital after he was declared free from the killer disease.

The 53-year-old, from Hove, West Sussex, picked up the virus while at a conference at the Grand Hyatt hotel in Singapore.

On his way back to the UK, he stopped off for several days at a French ski chalet, where five Britons were subsequently infected with the virus.


He is also linked to at least five further cases of coronavirus in the UK, including two doctors, one of whom worked at a Brighton surgery that has closed its doors.



Mr Walsh, a scout leader, is also linked to one male patient taken ill in Majorca.

Scout leader Steve Walsh, 53, picked up the disease at a Singapore conference at the end of January (Picture: Rex)

He was in quarantine at St Thomas’ Hospital in London and on Wednesday afternoon NHS strategic incident director Professor Keith Willett said he would be discharged.

The medic added: ‘I’m pleased to say that – following two negative tests for coronavirus, 24 hours apart – Mr Walsh has been discharged from Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, having made a full recovery following his treatment.

‘Mr Walsh’s symptoms were mild and he is no longer contagious and poses no risk to the public.

‘He is keen to return to his normal life and spend time with his family out of the media spotlight.

‘I would like to thank the clinical team who treated Mr Walsh in hospital, as well as all the NHS staff who are working hard with other health organisations to limit the spread of coronavirus and treat the small numbers who have contracted the illness.’

Mr Walsh was treated at St Thomas’ Hospital in London (Picture: PA)

There have been eight confirmed UK cases of coronavirus, now officially renamed as Covid-19, but no fatalities.

At the epicentre in China, there have been more than 1,100 deaths and more than 44,600 infections.

As soon as Mr Walsh realised he had been exposed to a confirmed case of coronavirus, he contacted his GP, NHS 111 and Public Health England.

He was advised to attend an isolated room at hospital and then was subsequently isolated at home until the test results were back.

When they were found to be positive, he was taken by ambulance to London where he remained for a week.

During that time the worker for gas analysis firm Servomex did not attend any Scout meetings.

Workers in China are trying to find a vaccine (Picture: Rex)

Officials in the UK are working to trace a number of contacts of the doctors who picked up coronavirus after contact with Mr Walsh.

Professor Paul Cosford, emeritus medical director of Public Health England (PHE), said that those of concern would have had face-to-face contact or been within a two-metre range for 15 minutes or more of an infected person.

In Brighton, Patcham Nursing Home said on Tuesday that it has ‘closed to all visitors’ after one of the infected GPs visited a patient there about a week ago.



The County Oak Medical Centre in Brighton also remained closed after it emerged one of the doctors working there had contracted the virus.

It emerged that the infected doctor was acting as a locum and had carried out a day of admin work there recently but had not come into direct contact with patients.

There are also more than half a dozen schools in Brighton, Hove and Eastbourne have pupils or staff who are self-isolating at home after advice from Public Health England.

A man in protective clothing cleaning a GP surgery in Brighton (Picture: PA)

In an unrelated case, two prisoners at HMP Bullingdon are being tested for coronavirus and are being held in isolation.

It is thought one of the men is Mark Rumble, who was recently brought back to the UK from a jail in Thailand.

British nationals are also among dozens who have been quarantined on the Diamond Princess cruise ship off the coast of Japan.

There are 174 confirmed cases on the vessel.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared it a national health emergency and there are currently hosting a conference on the virus in Geneva.

The number of infections have dropped in the last two days, leading some scientists to optimistically predict coronavirus could have reached its peak.