Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assurances his Department has received from NHS England that the increase in provision of care in the community and remote consultations as a result of the covid-19 outbreak will not result in missed cancer diagnoses.

The National Health Service in England continued to prioritise cancer diagnosis and treatment throughout the pandemic. In March 2022, over 250,000 urgent cancer referrals were made by general practitioners in England – an increase of 70,000 compared to March 2020. With NHS England, we are increasing diagnostic capacity and connectivity by investing in more than 160 community diagnostic centres, to improve access to tests for cancer. Online consultations and telemedicine are also providing flexibility for patients.