Kat Smithson, Director of Policy and Campaigns at NAT (National AIDS Trust) said: “The Rowe case is the first of its kind in the UK and the circumstances are unique, which is the reason for the interest in the case.

“To have the intention to transmit HIV to another person is deplorable and would require avoiding one’s own crucial medication. The vast majority of people living with HIV in the UK are on effective treatment meaning the virus cannot be passed on to others. People living with HIV should not be avoided, feared or discriminated against, including when it comes to sex and dating.”

Daryll Rowe was sentenced in England for the intentional transmission of HIV to five men and for attempting to infect a further five on 18 April 2018. Read our previous statement here.

For interviews or further comment, please email Senior Communications Officer Charlie Alderwick on charlie.alderwick@nat.org.uk or call 020 7814 6727 (for out of hours press enquiries call 07580 094013)

Reporting HIV

Click here for Reporting HIV: How To Get It Right, brief guidelines for reporting on HIV.