Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the implementation and uptake of opt-out HIV blood-borne virus testing in prisons across England; and what actions they plan to take if inconsistencies or low uptake are found.

The new HIV Action Plan sets out how the Government will enable every level of the healthcare system to work together to engage everyone in prevention, testing and treatment, tackling stigma, and reaching our ambition to end new HIV transmissions by 2030. This includes a dedicated action to deliver tailored and targeted HIV prevention, treatment, and care services to meet the needs of local populations and address inequalities, including the challenges of HIV testing in prisons.

HIV testing upon entry into prison is part of a national programme of opt-out blood borne virus (BBV) testing which tests people for hepatitis C, hepatitis B, and HIV. Sexual health services in prisons are commissioned by NHS England under the Section 7a Public Health Functions Agreement with the Department. This sets out targets for this opt-out BBV testing programme, with an efficiency target of 50% testing uptake, and an optimal performance standard of 75% testing uptake.

While uptake of a BBV test has risen from 11% in 2016/17 to 72% overall in 2022/23, this is below the 75% target and there is variation by region and prison. To inform future progress, the UK Health Security Agency is working with regional partners to carry out an audit to understand the provision of HIV diagnosis, prevention and care in English prisons.