Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on rolling out a network of Genomic Laboratory Hubs.

Genomic testing in the National Health Service in England is provided through the NHS Genomic Medicine Service (GMS), delivered by a national genomic testing network of seven NHS Genomic Laboratory Hubs (GLHs), each responsible for coordinating services for a particular part of the country. The NHS GLHs aim to provide a cutting-edge and comprehensive genomic testing service using the latest technology. The NHS GLHs work together with standardisation and quality at the core, driving rapid adoption of technology and delivering testing as directed by the National Genomic Test Directory, which outlines the full range of genomic testing offered by the NHS. The Test Directory currently covers testing for over 3,200 rare diseases and over 200 cancers.

NHS England have regular discussions with each NHS GLH, as part of quarterly assurance meetings, to discuss opportunities to improve service delivery.