here - United Kingdom Parliament

299WH
1 DECEMBER 2010 HIV
300WH
HIV
2.30 pm
Mr Edward Leigh (in the Chair): The sitting is resumed.
Hon. Members: Hear, hear!
David Cairns (Inverclyde) (Lab): That might be the
best cheer I get all day. I welcome you to the Chair, Mr
Leigh. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship
in this important debate. I also thank Mr Speaker for
allowing this debate on HIV services in the UK to take
place on world AIDS day. I have been in Parliament for
nine years, but I am still ignorant about how debates are
selected—whether there is a lottery or whether Mr Speaker
has a say in the matter. If he does, I thank him; if it was
a lottery, I thank the Fates for timetabling this debate
on 1 December.
I begin with a point of clarification. This is not for
the benefit of hon. Members present in the Chamber, as
they are well aware of the procedures of this place, but
for those who are watching the debate on television or
the internet, and those who will read the account of the
debate in days to come. This debate will focus mainly on
HIV in the UK, but that is not because we think that
HIV outside the UK is not a problem, or because we are
unaware of the scale of HIV in the developing world.
Africa has 10% of the world’s population but 72% of
the deaths from AIDS, and we are aware of that.
However, parliamentary procedure means that different
Departments respond to the debates on different days,
and today it is the turn of the Department of Health,
not the Department for International Development.
Therefore, although an enormous number of points
could be raised about the global AIDS epidemic, I will
in the main restrict my comments to HIV in the UK.
With your indulgence, Mr Leigh, I might also sneak in a
few comments about the international scene; I alerted
the Minister about that in advance.
If colleagues are anxious to hear about the international
aspects of the HIV epidemic, I should say that a world
AIDS day reception will be held this evening at 7 pm in
the CPA Room. You are invited, Mr Leigh, as are all
hon. Members, friends and colleagues.
Mr Gareth Thomas (Harrow West) (Lab/Co-op): My
hon. Friend is performing a service by raising the issue
of HIV/AIDS in the UK. Does he also recognise that
many people, both inside and outside the country, want
to know what the UK Government intend to do about
the future funding of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS,
Tuberculosis and Malaria? That body has an excellent
record in getting drugs to people with TB, malaria and
particularly AIDS, many of whom are still in desperate
need.
David Cairns: I am grateful to my hon. Friend, who
was a distinguished and long-serving Minister at DFID.
In a sense, it is a false dichotomy to say that there is an
AIDS epidemic in the UK and an AIDS epidemic in
Africa and never the twain shall meet. One of the
largest at-risk populations in the UK is the African
community––people who come from Africa and are
HIV positive, or those who contract the disease in the
UK within the African community. I will speak about
that in a moment.
My hon. Friend is correct to highlight the need to
address the problem of the AIDS epidemic in Africa.
Over the past few years, one of the most effective ways
of doing that has been through the Global Fund to
Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. The last
Government had a good record in ensuring that the
global fund was initiated, then adequately resourced.
During the most recent meeting of the fund in October,
high, medium and low targets were set for the level of
replenishment. Unfortunately, the global community
failed to hit the low target, let alone the medium or high
targets.
I understand why the Government do not come forward
and state the exact figures for the replenishment of the
fund. Through DFID, they are conducting a multilateral
aid review, and until they decide their priorities, they
cannot say how much will be made available for the
global fund. Until we can provide a figure, I encourage
Ministers to let the world know, at least with rhetoric,
that we remain committed to the global fund.
Much of the world looks to the UK for an international
lead in tackling AIDS, and other countries will be
looking to our figures for the replenishment of the
global fund before making their commitments. The
Government have an excellent opportunity to set a
global lead. I was going to make those points about the
international community at the end of my speech, but I
have made them now.
Let me return to matters for which the Minister is
responsible—she will be pleased to hear that—rather
than the rest of the world. I will make three points
about how we should respond to the ongoing HIV
epidemic in the UK and our public policy priorities.
First, I will speak a little about prevention, secondly I
will discuss testing and treatment and thirdly I will say
something about care and support. Those three things
do not exist in isolation; they are not, to use fabled
management-speak, in “silos.” One point leads into
another, but for the purposes of the debate I will say a
little about each issue in turn.
The backdrop to this debate is not only the ongoing
financial constraints under which all Governments around
the world are operating, but the NHS reconstruction
and reconfiguration that the Government have embarked
on, as well as the messages contained in the public
health White Paper, launched yesterday by the Secretary
of State. Because the national health service is undergoing
a process of change and transition, there is some uncertainty.
Until we get answers to some of the questions that we
raise, that uncertainty will continue.
As I pointed out in the main Chamber this afternoon,
although the Minister’s responsibility on such matters is
constrained to the NHS in England, the HIV virus does
not respect geographical borders. It is incredibly important
for the Government to work closely with the devolved
Administrations in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast to
ensure a coherent, joined-up approach. That is the only
way to tackle the virus in a way that will see a reduction
in the number of people affected and reverse the rate of
increase in new cases of the disease. Therefore, although
I am addressing the NHS in England, the message must
be heard by those who configure the NHS in the devolved
Administrations. I was pleased to hear that the Secretary
of State for Scotland will meet the Minister responsible
for health in Scotland tomorrow, and will put that
important issue on the agenda.