On 21st September 2016, all 193 countries of the UN signed a declaration agreeing to take action against antimicrobial resistant infections.

The Royal Society of Biology is a member of the Learned Society Partnership on Antimicrobial Resistance (LeSPAR), who released the following statement:

“The Learned Society Partnership on Antimicrobial Resistance (LeSPAR) welcomes news of global political and pharmaceutical industry support for actions to tackle the threat of resistant infections.

The G7 and G20 summits and the UN General Assembly have now agreed proactive steps to ensure collaboration between nations, accepting the recommendations of the WHO Global Action Plan on AMR and the UK AMR Review. In particular they have agreed:

• Support for all countries to design and implement national action plans
• Initiatives to stimulate research and development of new antimicrobial products
• Public awareness and engagement activities

In line with these agreements, the pharmaceutical industry has published a roadmap with an emphasis on public-private partnership. This guides both the development of new drugs and the management of access to antimicrobials, where and when they are needed.

LeSPAR will continue to work with our collective community of experts to ensure actions are taken in support of these resolutions.”

For more information visit the LeSPAR page, or read news stories from the UK Government and the Wellcome Trust.

On 10th October, during Biology Week, a Policy Lates event will examine 'Tackling antimicrobial resistance crisis - what roles will regulation and innovation play?'