Posted on 2014-03-24 | 02:16

Every year more than 1 million people die from a disease that many people consider to have already been eradicated. TB is airborne, infectious, drug-resistant and found in every country in the world, yet in the UK people tend to associate it with badgers rather than humans.

This World TB Day, 24th March, parliamentarians from around the world have come together to call for renewed action against the disease. The statement has been signed by over 130 representatives from across the G7 countries and the European Parliament.

Roger, one of more than 30 Labour MPs and Peers to sign the statement, said: “TB has killed more people than any other infectious disease in history, and it still kills 1.3 million people every single year. The only way that we’re going to beat the disease is if we have coordinated, global action.”

Members of the UK House of Commons and House of Lords make up over half of all the politicians who have signed the statement, reflecting the fact that TB remains a significant problem here in the UK. Parts of the country have rates to match those found in some of the worst affected countries in the world, and London has the highest rates of any capital city in Western Europe. Birmingham’s rates are only fractionally lower.

“There is low awareness of what a problem TB really is,” said Roger. “Rates of TB across Birmingham are higher than the World Health Organisation’s definition of a ‘high risk’ area, yet many people probably aren’t aware of what the symptoms are.” Birmingham has the highest number of TB cases of any city in the UK outside of London and is working hard to tackle the disease.

Nonetheless, lack of awareness of the disease is posing a real problem, particularly in the long delays between the onset of symptoms and diagnosis. TB is infectious, so if you don’t get diagnosed and start treatment you can pass it onto other people. Because TB is difficult to diagnose and people aren’t familiar with the symptoms, almost half of all patients wait longer than 3 months before getting diagnosed.

“There is a lot we need to do to tackle the disease, but it all starts with political commitment.” Said Aaron Oxley, Executive Director of RESULTS UK, an NGO that works on TB. “Local MPs can make a fantastic difference, whether that’s advocating for local issues or working together to call for global action as they have done by signing this statement.”