Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce the risk of cardiac arrest among young people.

The NHS Fetal Anomaly Screening Programme tests for 11 specific physical conditions including congenital heart disease. All parents are also offered a physical examination of their baby within 72 hours of giving birth, which includes checking the baby for heart murmurs.

To improve survival rates for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest cases, on 29 December 2022 the Government announced a new £1 million one-off fund that will expand defibrillator access in the community. The Government is acting on the drivers of cardiovascular diseases, including smoking. We have set out plans to create the first smokefree generation and announced significant new funding to support current smokers.