Liberal Democrat signs motion for HIV prevention

Lembit Opik, leader of the Welsh Liberal Democracts, has put his name to an early day motion concerning the prevention of HIV.

His support follows a report by the Health Protection Agency (HPA) published this week reporting that an estimated 63,500 adults in the UK are infected with HIV. This figure is based on around two-thirds of that number being diagnosed with the virus and the remainder representing a prediction of the number not aware that they are infected.

“This is clearly an issue that is not going away. The level of HIV infections is rising globally,” Mr Opik said.

“Indeed, contrary to our hopes, the report shows that the rates of HIV [are] continuing to rise in Wales,” he added.

Mr Lembit proposed that a holistic approach, involving better investment in new technologies for the treatment of HIV alongside the promotion of safer sex, would be necessary to deal with HIV.

The HPA report noted that there were 7,450 new cases of infection with HIV recorded in 2005 and expressed concern that many people infected with the virus were not diagnosed in the earliest possible stages, resulting in a delay in the administration of treatment.

It urged assessment by primary health care practitioners assess the need of potentially testing groups statistically at a greater risk of contracting HIV for the virus.