World Antimicrobial Resistance Awareness Week 2025

That this House recognises and marks World Antimicrobial Resistance Awareness Week 2025; notes that the theme this year is Act Now: Protect Our Present, Secure Our Future and urges bold, united action; further notes that antimicrobial resistance (AMR) contributes to an estimated 35,200 deaths annually in the UK, with drug-resistant infections in humans rising by 13 per cent despite a target to reduce them by 10 per cent; acknowledges that, in England, 1 in 5 hospital beds are occupied by patients with infectious diseases, and those with resistant infections are more likely to die within 30 days than those with treatable infections; further recognises that it is estimated that AMR globally contributes to $412 billion a year in healthcare expenditure; also notes that infection diagnostic tests are advancing rapidly, particularly since the covid-19 pandemic and the rapid development of lateral flow tests and point-of-care technology; notes that early evidence shows that some newer infection diagnostic tests can have cost-saving benefits of over £8,000 per test and that smarter infection diagnostics, from rapid tools in GP surgeries to advanced hospital-based susceptibility tests, are central to delivering optimal infection care, enabling earlier interventions, targeted treatments, and more efficient use of NHS capacity; believes that despite their clinical and economic value, these tools remain underused; and further believes that it is imperative that findings from recent research are harnessed and that the Government must invest in infection diagnostics in the NHS.