Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria

Danny Chambers Excerpts

Tuesday 4th November 2025 Westminster Hall

[Dr Danny Chambers (Winchester) (LD)]

I beg to move,

That this House has considered Government support for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

It is an honour to serve under your chairship, Mr Dowd. It is 2025, and we find ourselves discussing whether the United Kingdom will continue supporting an organisation that has saved millions of lives. This is an important and timely debate, and it should remind us how much progress we have made, and how much we stand to lose if we step back now.

When I spoke earlier this year about the US cutting funding to the World Health Organisation, I said then, and will repeat today, that global health is not charity; it is security and self-interest. Supporting international health systems does not just save lives overseas; it keeps us safer here at home. Stronger systems abroad mean fewer outbreaks reaching our shores, more stable trading partners and a healthier global economy, which Britain depends on. Investing in the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is not only the right thing to do morally but the smart thing to do economically and strategically.

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

I am very much informed by my constituents in Strangford, where local church groups undertake fantastic work to support those in other countries plagued with the likes of malaria, tuberculosis and AIDS. I think specifically of the Ards Elim church in Newtownards in Strangford, which sends groups out every year to support those facing the devastating impact of those diseases. Does the hon. Member agree that more must be done, either by helping to fund their work or working in partnership with them, to ensure that we are doing everything necessary to help them do their bit to help others?

[Dr Chambers]

The hon. Member is completely right about the work that voluntary and church groups do on global public health.

[Edward Morello (West Dorset) (LD)]

I congratulate my hon. Friend on securing this important debate. He mentioned the importance of investing in funds to protect our security. He will know better than anyone that malign-influence powers such as Russia and China are eager to step into the void that we leave when we withdraw our aid. Does he agree that if we do not fund the Global Fund properly, malign powers such as those will step in and shape global health policy in their own image?

[Dr Chambers]

I totally agree with my hon. Friend, who sits on the Foreign Affairs Committee; that is an insightful point.

Many of us will remember “It’s a Sin”, Channel 4’s extraordinary drama about the HIV/AIDS crisis in the 1980s. It was joyful and heartbreaking, and it reminded us that behind every statistic was a real person—sons, daughters, friends and partners, all with lives full of love and potential. But HIV today is not a death sentence. Science has done its job. Because of one pill a day, or even a single injection every few months, people can live long and healthy lives. The UN’s 95-95-95 target—that 95% of people living with HIV know their status, that 95% of those are on treatment, and that 95% of those are achieving viral suppression—is within reach, but it will not happen by accident. It requires commitment, funding and global co-operation.

[Steve Race (Exeter) (Lab)]

I am delighted that the Prime Minister has chosen to co-host the eighth replenishment of the Global Fund, alongside the Republic of South Africa. I put on record my thanks to my hon. Friend the Member for Gedling (Michael Payne) for working hard over the last year to corral myself and other colleagues to work with the Government to make the case for the Global Fund. Does the hon. Member agree with me that by co-hosting the summit, which is a good thing in itself, we are showing that the UK remains at the forefront of global development, and that doing so in partnership with South Africa exemplifies our commitment to working with other nations to achieve our shared ambitions?

[Dr Chambers]

Yes, these are really important summits, and it is important to show international co-operation.

The Global Fund has been central to the progress I have spoken about. It has helped to save millions of lives and allowed millions of babies to be born HIV-free. Yet progress is fragile and without the sustained investment mentioned by the hon. Member for Exeter (Steve Race), the gains made will unravel and history will repeat itself.

The United States AIDS programme—the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief—launched more than 20 years ago, has saved around 25 million lives. It supports testing, treatment and prevention in more than 50 countries. To show the impact of cuts on these programmes, following funding cuts to that initiative earlier this year, an estimated 120,000 people have died—more than the population of a constituency.

[Monica Harding (Esher and Walton) (LD)]

I congratulate my hon. Friend on securing this vital debate and powerfully laying out the success of the Global Fund. Stepping back now and cutting our contribution to the fund, just as the United States is abandoning vaccination programmes altogether, would be devastating for some of the world’s most vulnerable people, and a step back in the progress made. Does my hon. Friend agree that, if the Government do not commit to replenishing the Global Fund sufficiently this year, that not only betrays our extraordinary progress and leadership but, as co-hosts, gives a signal that it is okay for others to do the same?

[Dr Chambers]

I completely agree about the importance of demonstrating international leadership on this issue. If international support declines, from us and other countries, an additional 10 million new HIV infections, including up to 880,000 in children, could occur by 2030. Those are preventable deaths—people who could be alive this time next year if we choose differently and maintain funding.

Tuberculosis, often called a Victorian superbug, is on the rise again, with cases in England up 13% last year. Globally, it remains one of the leading infectious killers. It is largely preventable, treatable, and curable in the vast majority of cases, yet is too often neglected. Malaria is a microscopic parasite, spread by something as small as a mosquito, that continues to kill half a million people a year. There is a saying, “If you think you are too small to make a difference, you have never spent the night in a tent with a mosquito.” We know what works: mosquito nets, repellents, rapid tests and education. The challenge is not the science but the access. The tools exist but too many communities cannot afford or reach them.

When it comes to global public health,

“Nobody wins unless everybody wins.”

Those are not my words but Bruce Springsteen’s. They apply just as much to global health as they do to any other struggle. If we allow international health systems to weaken and turn our backs on collaboration, we are failing not only others but ourselves. Every time we strengthen a health system abroad, we strengthen Britain’s safety at home. We reduce the risk of the next pandemic reaching our shores, protect supply chains, stabilise economies and open new opportunities for trade and innovation.

If we invest now, we can cement the UK’s reputation as a global leader in health innovation, not just through our laboratories and universities, but through partnerships such as the Global Fund that translate research into real-world impact. British expertise in vaccine development, diagnostics and data science already help to shape programmes that have saved lives across the world. Continued investment allows us to share knowledge, strengthen health systems and, in doing so, build influence and resilience that benefit the UK and our global partners.

We also need to be honest about the wider picture. The UK’s official development assistance budget has already been reduced from 0.7% to 0.5% of national income. The Government are now reducing it further, to around 0.3% by 2027. The Fleming Fund, which monitors and helps to tackle antimicrobial resistance, has been scaled back, and the UK’s contribution to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance has fallen from about £1.65 billion to £1.25 billion for the next funding cycle, which is a real-terms reduction of roughly 40%.

Taken together, those decisions risk sending a message that Britain is retreating from its proud record of global health leadership. If we are serious about being a world leader in science, public health and international development, maintaining our commitment to the Global Fund is one of the clearest and most effective ways to show it. A rushed transition from global aid to self-financing, forced by rapid funding reductions, will result in direct harm through reduced healthcare, stock-outs of essential medicines and untimely deaths. When this is done in the context of infectious disease, the long-term cost will rise in exchange for short-term savings.

[Richard Foord (Honiton and Sidmouth) (LD)]

My hon. Friend talks about infectious disease. The cost of the malaria vaccine is now thought to be just under $5 a dose, which is amazing purchasing power. By contrast, the UK, under the last Government, who are not represented here today, was spending 29% of UK aid on in-country donor costs—that is, on hotel accommodation. Does he think this money could be better spent?

--- Later in debate ---

[Peter Dowd (in the Chair)]

Order. Just before the hon. Gentleman responds, I remind Members that the Minister will speak at quarter past 4. The Minister is entitled to 15 minutes. I know other Members wish to speak; however, that is the way we must operate. I remind the hon. Member of that.

[Dr Chambers]

I thank my hon. Friend for his intervention, and I am finishing up now, Mr Dowd.

Britain has always punched above its weight when it comes to science, health and compassion. We helped to eradicate smallpox. We led on vaccine distribution. We have the knowledge, compassion and credibility to lead again, if we choose to. During the covid-19 pandemic, we all waited for the science to catch up—for a vaccine and for hope. When it finally arrived, the world changed overnight. With HIV, TB and malaria, we do not have to wait. The science is already there. The treatments already exist. What is missing is the political will and the funding.