TB must remain a global health priority for the Government

Lord Herbert of South Downs

My Lords, sustainable development goal 3.3 says that HIV, AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis must be beaten by 2030. On the current rate of progress, TB will not be beaten for 100 years. I was pleased to hear the Minister say that global public health will be prioritised. Will TB, within that, continue to be a priority for the Government? TB is an airborne infectious disease, and it is an entirely unnecessary loss of life that 1.5 million people a year still die from it.

The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Baroness Chapman of Darlington

One could say the same about HIV and, to an extent, malaria. That is one of the reasons that the UK is now the largest donor to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. As we now understand only too well, these things not only have a hugely damaging effect on developing countries but can find their way here. The Prime Minister will co-host the replenishment of the Global Fund in South Africa in the autumn, and it is his job to announce a decision on that pledge. I will not do that today, but the noble Lord will see the concerns that he has aired reflected in that announcement.