Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of the capacity and effectiveness of diagnostics throughout the NHS.

Professor Sir Mike Richards was commissioned to undertake a review of diagnostics capacity (NHS Long Term Plan, 3.55). The report, ‘Diagnostics: recovery and renewal’, was discussed at the NHS England and NHS Improvement public Board meeting on 1 October 2020. The report was published with the Board papers and is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/nhs-england-and-nhs-improvement-board-meetings-in-common-agenda-and-papers-1-october-2020/