Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions his Department has had with the Association of British Insurers about the genetic discrimination against applicants for life insurance.

The Code on Genetic Testing and Insurance (the Code) is an agreement between the Association of British Insurers (ABI) and the Government which aims to prevent genetic discrimination and provide reassurance to the public about genetic testing and access to life, critical illness, and income protection insurance products.

Given advances in genetics and genomics, to ensure that the Code remains fit for purpose, the Government and the ABI agreed the Code should be reviewed, in a joint process, every three years. The first review of the Code, conducted by the Department and ABI, was published in December 2022. It sets out further steps which will be taken over the coming year to gather further information, via a call for evidence and stakeholder workshops, to ensure the Code remains mutually beneficial for both consumers and the insurance industry.