World AIDS Day

World AIDS Day, which is today, always provides an important opportunity for reflection.

As we look back over the last quarter of a century, the speed at which AIDS has spread across the world is astonishing and horrifying. As people of conscience and concern we are called to act; to halt and reverse the spread of HIV and AIDS at home and abroad.

I am proud of Labour?s history of international leadership in on HIV and AIDS. Through our Presidencies of the G8 and EU in 2005, the UK led the way in galvanising international commitment, increasing funding, and achieving better results in the global response to HIV and AIDS.

Since 2004, 20 times more people have access to life-saving treatment. Since 2003 the price of first line AIDS drugs has halved. And there are now more than 4 million people on anti-retroviral treatment, compared to just 100,000 people who received it back in 2001.

This is important progress. However, with more than 33 million people around the world living with HIV and most prevention strategies available to fewer than 1 in 5 people who need them, the scale of the challenge remains vast. Sub-Saharan Africa continues to be the region most affected, where AIDS is its leading cause of death and 14 million children across the region have been orphaned by AIDS.

With Labour, the UK is the second largest contributor to HIV and AIDS globally, having commited £6 billion, to strengthen health systems and services in developing countries, on top of our £1 billion commitment to the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Labour?s investment will help meet the urgent shortfall of health workers in the worst-hit African countries and will enable developing countries to improve antenatal care to prevent HIV from being passed on to babies in the womb.

The truly terrible spread of AIDS shows just how interconnected our lives are. It has reached every corner of the globe, bringing destruction to lives and communities on all continents. In response to the challenge we can?t walk by on the other side. On World AIDS Day we recommit to ensuring that the goal of universal access to prevention, treatment and care is achieved.