In a question in the House of Lords on 24th February, Lord Black (who is a Patron of the Terrence Higgins Trust) challenged the Government about what he described as a "crisis in sexual health" - with infections and antimicrobial resistance on the rise and clinics closing because of cutbacks.

This is his question, with the full text of the short debate here. 

"The desperate truth is that we are fast approaching a crisis in sexual health. Sexually transmitted infections such as gonorrhoea and syphilis are skyrocketing, new infections such as trichomoniasis and shigella are emerging, antimicrobial resistance is on the march, and demand for services at sexual health clinics is vastly outstripping supply as clinics close as a result of brutal cutbacks.

"All this was set out in chilling detail in the recent The State of the Nation report from the Terrence Higgins Trust, which underlined how action is needed immediately to deal with this crisis. Does my noble friend agree with the report that the long-term implications of all this are extremely alarming? When will the promised sexual health strategy be published, and what immediate steps will the Government take to improve access to sexual health services in England? Time is not on our side."

ENDS