Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of taking steps with his with African counterparts to support the use of (a) Lenacapavir and (b) other long-lasting HIV prevention drugs among high-risk populations.

Long-acting technologies could be game-changers in the global response to HIV, but only if they reach the countries and communities that need them most, including young women and girls in sub-Saharan Africa and the most vulnerable and marginalised groups everywhere. Promoting choice is an important element of this.

We welcome the latest World Health Organisation guidelines announced this week recommending lenacapavir as an additional long-acting HIV prevention tool and long-acting cabotegravir and rilpivirine for long-acting HIV treatment. The UK continues to work closely with global partners to address regulatory, manufacturing, and affordability barriers to improve access to these technologies for those most at risk. This includes our support to Unitaid, the Global Fund, and towards research and development of the dapivirine ring.