Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 16
16
Acknowledged
Government's 2019-24 AMR action plan targets largely unmet with slow progress.
Conclusion
The government achieved only one of the five quantitative domestic targets it set as part of the 2019–24 NAP–reducing the use of antibiotics in food-producing animals.41 The 2019–24 NAP also set 128 commitments for DHSC and Defra which related to the UK or England. However, specific deadlines were not set for the commitments and by January 2024 only seven were recorded as being fully implemented.42 The government acknowledged in the 2024–29 NAP that, in some areas, progress on tackling AMR has been slow and there has been insufficient focus on and resources allocated to AMR.43
Government Response Summary
The government agrees with the observation of past progress, and states it will monitor progress against new NAP targets biannually, conduct annual reviews, and use surveillance trends and modelling to inform future target ambition, while acknowledging the challenge of preventing increases in some infections.
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
2.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: Winter 2025 2.2 Progress against NAP human health targets is closely monitored, using data to assess effectiveness, guide future action, and ensure alignment with broader public health objectives. The government conducts formal reporting on these targets biannually. Additionally, targets are subject to annual review over the summer, with the potential to revise, if deemed appropriate and agreed by the UK AMR Strategy Board. 2.3 Analysis of surveillance trends will inform recommendations on the range and ambition of targets. UKHSA will also model trends in specific drug-resistant infections, accounting for population changes, to project counterfactual trends. Expert advice on target revisions will be sought from the Advisory Committee on Antimicrobial Prescribing, Resistance and Healthcare Associated Infection. 2.4 The government supports achievable targets being set, to help secure support from the healthcare system and contribute to long-term change. UKHSA predicts the incidence of drug-resistant and gram-negative blood stream infections will continue to rise due to 20 increasing age, medical comorbidities, and population demographic changes. Therefore, preventing an increase in these infections from the 2019 baseline is currently ambitious. 2.5 The government has previously supported targets developed by the livestock sectors through the Responsible Use of Medicines in Agriculture Alliance (RUMA) Targets Task Force on AMR, which have resulted in a 59% reduction in antibiotic use in livestock since 2014. The livestock sectors, coordinated by RUMA, are developing a new set of sector-specific targets, which are due to be published in late 2025. If sufficiently ambitious, the Vetinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) will incorporate them into the NAP delivery programme.