UK aid cuts ‘directly hamper’ fight against HIV, warn politicians and Aids groups

Cuts to foreign aid will “directly hamper” global efforts to fight Aids, putting millions at risk, warned a coalition of celebrities, politicians and former heads of state in a joint letter to the UK prime minister.

Musicians Annie Lennox and Elton John, actor Charlize Theron and Ban Ki-moon, former UN secretary-general, among others, said they were “deeply unsettled” by cuts to organisations providing vital HIV/Aids services, in a letter to Boris Johnson on Thursday evening.

The letter follows the government’s decision in November to reduce aid spending from 0.7 per cent of gross domestic product to 0.5 per cent.

The cuts to HIV/Aids organisations have come as the pandemic has placed pressure on health services particularly within the developing world. The signatories warned that “critical gains” made in recent years could be lost and the number of new HIV infections and Aids-related deaths would rise without co-ordinated global action.

In June, Johnson will host the G7 summit in Cornwall where the government hopes to reassert itself on the international stage following the UK’s departure from the EU.

The signatories warned the cuts will “damage the UK’s reputation” and have urged Johnson to continue to invest in HIV/Aids projects to ensure that a UN commitment to end Aids globally by 2030 is met. 

“We strongly recommend that you repair the impact of cuts by making supplementary allocations . . . particularly as the UK and other G7 countries consider further investment in pandemic preparedness and response,” they said.

“Combined with the Covid-19 crisis, a resurgent Aids emergency could be catastrophic.”

The letter, co-ordinated by Frontline Aids and the Elton John Aids Foundation, was signed by more than 30 people including the former presidents of Malawi and Botswana and former UK international development secretary Andrew Mitchell.

Backlash against the government is growing following its decision to slash overseas aid by about a third, which will probably save the Treasury as much as £4bn.

Announcing the aid changes last year, chancellor Rishi Sunak argued the pandemic has placed a strain on the country’s finances, and stressed the aid target would return to 0.7 per cent once the “fiscal situation” allowed. 

Foreign secretary Dominic Raab said last month that the new aid budget, which amounts to just over £10bn, will provide value for taxpayers’ money while ensuring that key priorities such as tackling conflict and boosting trade relationships are met. 

However, many NGOs have expressed alarm at the scope of the cuts. 

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/Aids (UNAIDS), recently announced it would receive just £2.5m from the UK government in 2021, compared with £15m last year. 

Huge progress has been made in addressing HIV/Aids in recent years. UNAIDS estimate that new HIV infections have been reduced 40 per cent since 1998, meanwhile, deaths linked with Aids have fallen 60 per cent since 2004. In 2019, about 38m people were living with HIV across the world.

The letter noted that while Aids-related deaths have fallen, HIV testing has dropped 41 per cent in parts of Africa and Asia during the pandemic.

Lord Fowler, former speaker of the House of Lords, said: “The HIV response is also a vital support structure for the fight against Covid-19 . . . Now is time to step up, not step back”.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said: “The UK is a major investor in global health institutions and supports stronger health systems worldwide.”