BRUSSELS, Nov 8 (Reuters) - Aiming to combat AIDS by cutting the cost of safe sex, the European Parliament's Socialist group launched a campaign on Thursday to press EU governments to cut sales tax on condoms.

The 27 European Union member states are free to fix their own Value Added Tax rates on condoms, with a nimimum level of five percent. It is as high as 25 percent in Sweden and Denmark.

"Cutting VAT on condoms to the minimum rate would be both a practical step in tackling AIDS and a powerful symbolic gesture on World AIDS Day (Dec. 1)," Socialist group vice-president Jan Marinus Wiersma said on launching an online petition at www.socialistgroup.eu.

World Health Organisation figures showed HIV infection rates were growing in Europe, with nearly 27,000 new cases reported in 2005, he said. (Reporting by Paul Taylor; Editing by Giles Elgood)

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