Sustainable Development Goals: HIV

Lord Cashman Excerpts

Tuesday 1st December 2015 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Cashman]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in order to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, how they plan to invest in key populations in middle-income countries where it is expected that by 2020, 70 per cent of people living with HIV will live.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for International Development (Baroness Verma) (Con)]

My Lords, the UK is proud to be the second largest international funder of HIV prevention, care and treatment. We have pledged up to £1 billion to the Global Fund and £9 million to support key population groups through the Robert Carr civil society Networks Fund. The UK’s support to the Global Fund will prevent approximately 8.4 million new malaria, HIV and TB infections.

[Lord Cashman (Lab)]

I thank the Minister for that Answer. Today is World AIDS Day. AIDS is the biggest killer of women of reproductive age. AIDS is the second-biggest killer of adolescents. In 2014, 1.2 million people died of an HIV/AIDS-related illness. There are 36.9 million people living with HIV, and most people living with HIV are in middle-income countries. Therefore, it is vital that when addressing the possible withdrawal of programmes and funding from middle-income countries, the Government look at indicators other than the blunt instrument of GNI.