Fall in new HIV diagnoses among gay and bi men in England

The number of HIV diagnoses has fallen among gay and bisexual men in England, new figures reveal. 

HIV surveillance figures for 2024, published by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) on Tuesday (7 October), showed that new diagnoses have fallen by four per cent across the UK: from 3,169 in 2023 to 3,043 last year.

Among gay and bisexual men, new HIV diagnoses in England decreased by almost six per cent, from 859 in 2023 to 810 in 2024. Ethnic minority men constituted 35 per cent of all new diagnoses in this group, the study showed.

The largest drop was among white men, from 488 to 461, compared with ethnic minority men, where the fall was found to be from 290 cases to 285.

The UKHSA noted that the number of people accessing HIV prevention medication, pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) increased annually, while deaths of those with HIV fell from 751 in 2023 to 643 in 2024 – a drop of 14 per cent.

But Dr Tamara Djuretic, the head of UKHSA’s HIV section, said there were still challenges to overcome. Young people between the ages of 15 and 24 were found to have the lowest HIV testing and treatment rates, dropping by seven per cent year on year, and only 34.6 per cent of Black African heterosexual women and 36.4 per cent of straight Black African men were taking PrEP.

The highest uptake of PrEP was found to be have among white (79.4 per cent) and ethnic minority (77.8 per cent) gay, bisexual and all men who have sex with men.

“It’s excellent to see new HIV diagnoses fall and our continued success in meeting UNAIDS targets, with 98 per cent of people on treatment having suppressed viral loads, meaning they can live healthy lives and cannot pass HIV on to sexual partners,” Djuretic said.

“However, we’re concerned about poorer testing and treatment outcomes among young people, who are at a crucial stage for establishing healthy sexual behaviours. Early diagnosis can be life-saving, so please get regularly tested if you’re sexually active.

“HIV tests and PrEP are free and confidential through the NHS and local sexual health services. If you do test positive, treatment is highly effective.”

Last month, Prince Harry joined Hollywood star Charlize Theron in a new campaign almost 40 years after his mother, princess Diana’s ground-breaking handshake with an Aids patient.

An independent HIV commission was launched in 2019 with the aim of ending new transmissions by 2030. 

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