Strong Local Voice, Strong Local Champion

Brooke pressures Blair to make Tuberculosis a G8 priority

Annette Brooke MP, Judith Adams (Results UK) and author Paul Thorn (L-R)

Local MP and former TB patient Annette Brooke has joined with others to deliver a 'Call to Stop TB' to Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Annette visited 10 Downing Street with other TB activists to present a petition signed by MPs, Peers, health activists and leading members of academia and the medical establishment. In the petition, the Prime Minister was asked to make TB a G8 priority and to ensure that commitments are reached that will enable the objectives of the Global Plan to Stop TB to be realised.

Annette Brooke said:

"It is shocking that 9 million people are infected with TB every year, despite the disease being both treatable and preventable.

"The G8 summit will provide a crucial opportunity for some of the most influential nations in the world to make firm commitments in the fight against TB."

Prime Minister Tony Blair has become the first G8 leader to sign and endorse 'The Call to Stop TB' campaign which urges governments to fully fund and implement The Global Plan to Stop TB, 2006-2015. The Global Plan to Stop TB is expected to be central to high-level discussions on TB control taking place at the G8 summit in St. Petersburg this week.

By signing the Call to Stop TB, the Prime Minister has reinforced the UK Government's commitment to the Global Plan to Stop TB's vision and goals for 2015, to:

· Treat 50 million TB patients and save 14 million lives

· Produce the first new TB drug for 40 years by 2010

· Develop a new, affordable TB vaccine

· Halve TB prevalence and deaths

The Prime Minister said:

"The UK is fully committed to the Global Plan's vision and goals. Both Hilary Benn and Gordon Brown have confirmed their support of the Global Plan to Stop TB, 2006-2015 and called on all nations to mobilise the resources needed to implement it. I will further echo this by adding my signature to the 'Call to Stop TB'."

The UK's continued leadership on global TB control is welcomed by British supporters of the Call to Stop TB. They urge the Prime Minister to continue to lead by example and to use his political influence to encourage other G8 countries and the European Union to recognise the importance of achieving the goals of the Global Plan to Stop TB.

For it to succeed, the Global Plan to Stop TB requires more than £30 billion over the next ten years, with the immediate task of bridging a funding gap of almost £17 billion. Activists are therefore also calling on the UK government and other donors to dramatically scale up their contributions to global TB control.

Dr. Marcos Espinal, Executive Secretary of the Stop TB Partnership said:

"TB must be considered as a global priority and therefore we are pleased to see it included in the G8 agenda. We welcome the UK government's strong leadership and urge other G8 countries to raise the level of commitment to strengthen TB control. TB inflicts misery and destruction on the lives of millions of people every year, yet with the proper funding, we can prevent, treat and control tuberculosis."

Tony Blair joins other high-profile supporters who have signed the Call the Stop TB including UN Secretary-General Mr Kofi Annan; Chancellor Gordon Brown MP; Secretary of State for International Development Hilary Benn MP; Leader of the Liberal Democrats, Sir Menzies Campbell; British actress and former TB patient, Saffron Burrows, and actor Ralph Fiennes. The 'Call to Stop TB' has also been endorsed by many leading health and aid organisations including ActionAid, Christian Aid, and the UK Coalition of People Living with HIV/AIDS.

ENDS

Note to Editors

1. The petition from UK supporters of The Call to Stop TB was delivered to 10 Downing Street on Monday 10 July at 3pm by TB advocates, including former TB patient Annette Brooke MP and author Paul Thorn. Interviews can be arranged by prior arrangement.

2. For broadcast quality footage of UN Secretary-General Mr Kofi Annan signing The Call to Stop TB and electronic press kit from the Stop TB Partnership visit www.stoptb.org. A full list of supporters of The Call to Stop TB is available on request.

3. The Global Plan to Stop TB, 2006-2015, is a comprehensive assessment of the action and resources needed to implement the Stop TB strategy and make an impact on the global TB burden. The Global Plan to Stop TB was launched in January in Davos by UK Chancellor Gordon Brown, Microsoft founder Mr Bill Gates and the Nigerian President Obasanjo.

4. The Stop TB Partnership was established in 2000 to realise the goal of eliminating TB as a public health problem and, ultimately, to obtain a world free of TB. It comprises a network of more than 500 international organisations, countries, donors from the public and private sectors, governmental and nongovernmental organisations and individuals that have expressed an interest in working together to achieve this goal.

5. RESULTS is an international grassroots advocacy organisation (registered charity number 1015286). Founded in 1980, RESULTS supports a network of volunteer advocates across the UK and six other countries worldwide (Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan, Mexico and USA) to create the public and political will to end hunger and the worst aspects of poverty. RESULTS UK is a partner organisation of the Stop TB Partnership. For more information about the work of RESULTS visit www.results-uk.org.