That this House notes with concern the recently published Health Protection Agency statistics which reported the biggest rise in the number of TB cases since 1999; is further concerned by reports that TB specialist nurse positions are being left vacant or downgraded despite the publication of the Chief Medical Officer's TB Action Plan of 2004; and calls upon the Government to confront the problem of TB now by ensuring that the TB Action Plan is implemented and greater priority given to tackling the increasing burden of TB in all parts of the United Kingdom.

That this House notes with concern the recently published Health Protection Agency statistics which reported the biggest rise in the number of TB cases since 1999; is further concerned by reports that TB specialist nurse positions are being left vacant or downgraded despite the publication of the Chief Medical Officer's...

That this House acknowledges in the run up to World TB day that each year nearly two million people die and nine million become sick with TB despite the disease being both preventable and curable; recognises that TB is a global pandemic and an emergency in Africa and Eastern Europe; further notes that TB is the biggest killer of people with HIV/AIDS; welcomes the launch of the Global Plan to Stop TB 2006 to 2015 which if implemented will lead to 14 million more lives being saved over the next decade and Millennium Development Goal targets on TB being met; and calls upon the UK Government to contribute to the development and financing of the Global Plan.

That this House acknowledges in the run up to World TB day that each year nearly two million people die and nine million become sick with TB despite the disease being both preventable and curable; recognises that TB is a global pandemic and an emergency in Africa and Eastern Europe;...

That this House notes with concern the Government's proposals to vaccinate against tuberculosis only those children living in a high risk area; further notes that as children from low-risk areas grow up they may well move to high risk areas; considers the proposals to be short-sighted and detrimental to the future health of the population; and calls on the Government to look again at its plans on this matter.

That this House notes with concern the Government's proposals to vaccinate against tuberculosis only those children living in a high risk area; further notes that as children from low-risk areas grow up they may well move to high risk areas; considers the proposals to be short-sighted and detrimental to the...

That this House notes with concern that the prevalence of tuberculosis (TB) in the United Kingdom has risen by 33 per cent.; further notes that the tuberculin skin test for latent TB infection was developed 115 years ago and is inaccurate in up to 50 per cent. of cases; observes that the new T-SPOT blood test for TB delivers a 96.3 per cent. sensitivity rate, reducing missed TB cases, morbidity and higher costs of treating subsequent disease; further observes that the T-SPOT blood test requires only one visit to hospital, avoiding gaps in detection and treatment as a result of up to one-third of patients failing to attend the second visit required for skin testing; further notes that the Government's 2004 TB Action Plan identifies accurate diagnosis using technological advances as one of the key priorities for the control of TB; further observes that the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) appears in its draft guidance on TB testing to have reflected neither the potential savings of ??7,000 for every additional case of TB averted through use of the blood test, nor the improved quality of life of patients; further observes that the alternative Mantoux skin test being considered would require substantial retraining of healthcare personnel and is unlicensed for use in the United Kingdom; and calls upon the Department of Health and NICE to review current testing policy and promote greater adoption of the T-SPOT blood test as the most effective procedure.

That this House notes with concern that the prevalence of tuberculosis (TB) in the United Kingdom has risen by 33 per cent.; further notes that the tuberculin skin test for latent TB infection was developed 115 years ago and is inaccurate in up to 50 per cent. of cases; observes...

That this House acknowledges the continent-wide tuberculosis (TB) emergency recently declared by African Ministers of Health; notes with concern that TB kills two million people worldwide each year, that an estimated one third of the 40 million people living with HIV/AIDS are co-infected with TB and that TB is the leading killer of people living with HIV/AIDS; further notes with concern that the World Health Organisation's `3 by 5' initiative to provide three million people living with HIV/AIDS with life-prolonging antiretroviral drugs by 2005 is unlikely to be met; recognises that TB treatment is one of the most effective ways of extending the life of a dually infected person until antiretroviral drugs become universally available; believes that global efforts to tackle TB and HIV should be fully co-ordinated in order to control the rise of TB among HIV-infected people and to identify more patients in need of antiretroviral treatment; recognises that the theme of this year's World AIDS Day is `keep the promise'; and urges the Government to pledge its share for collaborative TB/HIV programmes as recommended in the Commission for Africa Report.

That this House acknowledges the continent-wide tuberculosis (TB) emergency recently declared by African Ministers of Health; notes with concern that TB kills two million people worldwide each year, that an estimated one third of the 40 million people living with HIV/AIDS are co-infected with TB and that TB is the...

That this House supports the World Health Organisation's World Tuberculosis Day on 24th March 2004 and recognises that poorly managed tuberculosis (TB) programmes are threatening to make TB incurable; notes that someone dies of TB every fifteen seconds and that this year more people than ever before will die of TB as new outbreaks are occurring in Eastern Europe and Africa where TB deaths are increasing after almost 40 years of steady decline; further notes that from a public health perspective incomplete treatment of TB is worse than no treatment at all resulting in a rise in multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) which is much more expensive to cure than non-MDR-TB; and calls on the Government to acknowledge that the sustainability of TB programmes require Government commitment and international action across the health sector.

That this House supports the World Health Organisation's World Tuberculosis Day on 24th March 2004 and recognises that poorly managed tuberculosis (TB) programmes are threatening to make TB incurable; notes that someone dies of TB every fifteen seconds and that this year more people than ever before will die of...