Zero new infections of HIV & HIV related deaths by 2030 is within sight and has been bolstered by the recently announced £23 million of Government funding which will support the new action plan.
However, to achieve zero new cases and deaths by 2030 will take more than Government funding. It will require commitment and leadership in every corner of the country from both local and regional leaders.
Nowhere is this more critical than in London where there are the highest proportion of HIV diagnoses in England (37% of newly diagnosed cases in 2020).
Further action is vital for Londoners. In September Emma asked the Mayor to commit to supporting a campaign encouraging testing by offering up parts of the TfL estate for advertising. At the time he agreed.
In September, Emma also proposed a motion to the assembly which made several asks of the Mayor and was unanimously agreed by the GLA.
The Mayor of London has now suggested in a written response to this motion that he would not support a campaign on the TfL estate with free advertising as well as making less than encouraging responses to the other asks.
Emma is calling on the Mayor to reconsider and commit to a campaign for National HIV Testing Week (7 - 13 February). We can end HIV in the near future; but we must do all we can today.
You can see Emma’s letter to the Mayor below:
Dear Mr Mayor,
On Thursday 2nd September the Assembly unanimously passed a motion recognising the importance of your manifesto pledge to reduce new cases of HIV by 80% by 2025 and entirely by 2030. The motion called for you to:
- Support opt-out HIV testing across the NHS
- Support HIV testing at home being made available in all 32 London Boroughs
- Work with NHS bodies to pilot a trial of PrEP availability beyond sexual health clinics
- Provide free TfL advertising space to encourage HIV testing and up to date information
- Make mental health support available to all Londoners living with HIV
On that same day I asked you specifically during a TfL Plenary meeting if you'd work with partners to provide a HIV testing campaign on the TfL estate, which you advised you would
I'm disappointed therefore that in your recent response to my motion you have rescinded this offer and suggested there's no space on the TfL network to provide free advertising to promote testing. This is particularly disappointing qiven the latest HIV stats which show there are approximately 1,650 people living with HIV in London who remain undiagnosed - 35% of all undiagnosed cases across England.
In October, through written question 2021/3831, I asked for a details of any TfL advertising spaces which have been qiven away for free but I have not yet received an answer. Given that you can confirm you will not offer further advertising space for HIV testing, you must know which businesses have taken up the allocated free advertising space. I would be very grateful for a prompt response to my question.
You'll understand the great multitude of opportunity there is to provide free advertising on the large TfL estate. Indeed, you provided £500k worth of free advertising for a vaginal moisturiser.
It follows therefore that there must be room to assist with promotion of HIV testing in the country's most concentrated areas of undiagnosed cases.
Diagnoses among heterosexuals have also overtaken those of gay and bisexual men (50% v 45% respectively) and so now more than ever an awareness campaign is crucial to achieving no new diagnosis by 2030 with the profile of the HIV epidemic changing.
London as a whole also continues to have the highest proportion of HIV diagnoses in England, with 37% of newly diagnosed cases in 2020. Further action is vital for Londoners.
I welcome your support for PrEP to be more widely available but take up again relies on increasing knowledge and awareness in diverse populations across the capital. As well as supporting roll-out of PreP in non-clinical settings to assist in take up it is advertising again that will also prove crucial to improving take up.
There are a number of other measures where your support is needed such as ensuring the Government's £20m support for opt-out HIV testing in A&E departments in areas of high HIV prevalence is successfully rolled out and encouraging Integrated Care Systems (ICS's) that have yet to commit to opt-out HIV testing to take it up.
I urge you to look again at providing a campaign through the TfL estate and wider commercial sites to raise awareness of testing and provide stigma busting information.
National HIV Testing Week takes place from 7 - 13 February and I implore you to work with TfL to explore how the profile of this vitally important week can be raised. You have committed to showing leadership on HIV but now must act to deliver this.
Yours sincerely,
Emma Best
Londonwide Assembly Member
Email: [email protected]
