You may have recently seen the national figures for HIV diagnosis, which indicate that the number of new cases of HIV has taken on a new slant. Most of the daily newspapers and nearly all of the TV News programs carried the story that during 1999 there were more new cases of HIV amongst “straight” people than in gay men within the UK.

These reports even prompted one local gay man to write to a national gay newspaper, Boyz, to express his view that these figures confirmed his belief that gay men had now taken on board the safer-sex message.

There were more new cases of HIV in BOTH communities during 1999 than in any previous year in the UK. The expected figures, according to the Public Health Laboratory Service’s website, are 1400 gay men and 1500 heterosexuals. What this means in real terms is that NEITHER community has taken on board the safer-sex message. People are still engaging in unsafe sex. Straight AND gay. And more often. What these figures really prove is that there is not enough money or time being spent on HIV prevention and awareness work for ALL our communities. The truth is that HIV is now endemic in the UK. People’s sexuality is no longer the issue. What matters is their education and understanding about this disease and learning ways they CAN avoid catching it.

It’s time this Government woke up and smelt the coffee