Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much and what proportion of the funding for diagnostic services provided in the last Spending Review has been used to improve the early detection and diagnosis of breast cancer; how that money has been spent; and if he will make a statement.

The most recent data available shows that in 2019, 85.7% of breast cancers were diagnosed at stages 1 and 2, when successful treatment is more likely. Of the additional diagnostic capital allocated in Spending Review 2021, £22 million has been committed to increasing breast screening equipment capacity by 2024/25.