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 increase breast cancer screening uptake (a) in general and (b) in (i) areas and (ii) communities where uptake is lowest.

NHS England has developed a national plan to improve uptake within the breast screening programme, part of which involves interventions to address inequalities and screening barriers. This includes working to ensure that breast screening appointments are as convenient to people as possible and focusing its efforts on low uptake areas and groups. NHS England is also working to ensure they have data, including on protected characteristics, to support services to deliver more targeted initiatives.