Keir Starmer urged to protect HIV funding for once-in-a-generation opportunity to end Aids
A coalition of leading charities, advocates and MPs backed the magazine’s editor-in-chief’s letter Independent, Geordie Greig calls on Sir Keir Starmer to protect UK funding for global HIV response; otherwise you risk missing out on “the incredible opportunity to end the AIDS epidemic within the next few years.”
In 2024, the world was on track to end the pandemic by 2030, but devastating aid cuts this year in rich countries including the UK and the US have thrown that prospect into doubt.
The Elton John Aids Foundation, the National Aids Foundation, Doctors Without Borders and the STOPAids coalition are among the groups supporting this support. IndependentHe called for the protection of the fund.
“Despite being so close to the finish line, failure to sustain global funding and progress means we could be back at the height of the crisis two decades ago, when people died en masse and healthcare systems collapsed around the world,” the letter says.
Britain is reducing its total foreign aid funding by 40 percent to spend more on defence. As part of the move, the government last month announced a 15 percent cut to the Global Fund, the leading international provider of HIV prevention and treatment, over the next three years, which could cost 255,000 lives.
By the end of January, the Secretary of State is expected to confirm where further cuts will occur over the next three years, with no major decisions yet to be made.
Alongside charities, MPs including former international development minister Sir Andrew Mitchell and David Mundell, co-chair of the all-party parliamentary group on HIV/Aids, have also backed the call to protect vital funds and save lives.
Despite the cut to the Global Fund, advocates welcomed the UK’s “significant commitment” of £850 million to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Mike Podmore, chief executive of STOPAids, a network of UK institutions working on the global response to HIV, said the contribution was “really important”.
But he said more funding was needed for three “critical” institutions in the global HIV response: United Nations agency UNAids; Unitaid, the medicines access agency; and the Robert Carr Fund, which ensures the inclusion of marginalized people most affected by HIV.
To maintain current funding levels the government will need to commit around £200 million over three years.
According to the UN’s latest estimates, there will be more than 4 million additional deaths and infections by 2030 unless global HIV finances are protected.
Earlier this month Sir Keir pledged to end the spread of HIV in the UK by 2030. Building on this commitment, the letter calls on the prime minister to “spread this to the rest of the world and lead to ending AIDS by 2030.”
Mr Mundell, the Conservative MP, said the ambition to end new HIV transmission was a rare global target that could be achieved by 2030: “We don’t want to give up on that possibility once we get here.
“There is a relatively simple solution to prevent many people from dying or suffering. Most people are sympathetic to that. But in the most basic sense, we are trying to prevent infections from coming into our own country and then having a significant impact on our health services.”
Sir Andrew added: “Decades before Covid, the emergence of HIV/Aids disrupted health systems and sparked terrifying public awareness campaigns.
“No one at the time imagined that a cure would be found quickly enough, but the UK invested heavily in the global search for a cure and almost miraculous progress followed. What was once a death sentence is now largely circumventable with the right treatment.”
But he now added: “Budget cuts threaten to undo the progress we have made globally, and some predictions point to a huge rise in deaths over the next few years.
“We cannot afford to take our foot off the pedal. We have a real chance to write the history of AIDS, and if Britain fails to play its vital role now, we will look back with shame and humiliation.”
Mr Podmore said the timetable to potentially defeat the virus was too short: “We are signing the letter because this is an incredible opportunity for the UK government to commit to the hope of investment and the real possibility of ending AIDS within five years.
“In a context of global conflict and challenge, ending one of the world’s worst pandemics is a win. It truly inspires us all and shows what true global collaboration can do. This is a critical time for UK government decision-making.”
In addition to protecting finances, IndependentHis letter calls on the UK government to fund new HIV innovations that make this goal a realistic possibility.
John Plastow, chief executive of UK-based global HIV charity Frontline Aids, said the new long-acting preventive drugs were “potential game changers that could help us achieve our mission to end Aids”.
“But we need investment to ensure communities most affected by HIV have access to these technologies.”
One such drug, lenacapavir, can block nearly all HIV infections and became available earlier this year. But experts worry that the vaccine, which is the closest to an HIV vaccine, may not reach enough people to reverse the situation due to funding cuts.
“To step back now would be a huge mistake: progress would stall, the number of people dying from AIDS-related diseases and new HIV infections would increase, and the risk of reversing years of gains would increase,” Mr Plastow said.
“With this modest but strategic commitment, the UK can help make the promise of ending AIDS by 2030 a reality,” the letter stated.
The letter came after a roundtable meeting held in parliament. Independent and a cross-party group of MPs working to support the rights of people living with HIV.
This article was produced as part of The Independent. Rethinking Global Aid project
