A government report commissioned by the Department of Health and Defra has revealed that Britain is facing a "massive" rise in infections caused by antibiotic resistant bacteria. The report’s researchers claimed their findings suggest humanity is once again moving towards an era where bacterial diseases will be impossible to treat, as even the most powerful antibiotics, formerly the last line of defence, are now ineffectual against certain types of bacteria.

The misuse of antibiotics in farming and medicine has been blamed for the rise in resistant bacteria across the world. A coalition of environmental and farming groups has formed which plans to lobby for more regulation in an attempt to preserve antibiotic use for emergencies.

Professor Peter Hawkey, a clinical microbiologist and chair of the Government's antibiotic-resistance working group, who led the report, has claimed antibiotic resistance is now the medical equivalent of climate change.

Concerns over the growing ineffectuality of antibacterial medicines are being compounded by the lack of new options available to treat infections. The government has pledged £500,000 for research into the growing menace, but scientists have warned that pharmaceutical companies are turning away from the search for new antimicrobials, as new agents are increasingly difficult to find and the development of antibiotics, which are taken over a comparatively short period, is less profitable than medication for chronic conditions, which can be taken over years.

In January, following a number of health scares, it was revealed that antibiotic resistant bacteria had been found in 12 out of 20 samples of chicken bought from supermarkets in German cities. Protests during Green Food Week in Berlin saw tens of thousands of demonstrators call on their government to do more to combat antibiotic resistance.

Governments in Germany, France, the UK and a number of other member states have announced plans to tighten regulations, along with the EU, which last year unveiled a 12 point plan to combat antibiotic resistance. The United States Food and Drug Agency also announced earlier in the year that it would be restricting the use of certain antimicrobial products (cephalosporins), however, there are concerns that big pharma, which wields a lot of political weight in the USA, where antibiotics are still licensed for use as growth promoters, will attempt to prevent further restrictions on the irresponsible use of drugs.

Nevertheless, Professor Hawkey told The Independent, "It is a worldwide issue – there are no boundaries. We have very good policies on the use of antibiotics in man and in animals in the UK. But we are not alone. We have to think globally."

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