Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the colonoscopy capacity required to implement the UK National Screening Committee's recommendations for bowel cancer that everyone aged 50-74 be offered Faecal Immunochemical Test screening every two years at a sensitivity level of 20μg/g.

NHS England is responsible for delivering the NHS Bowel Cancer Screening (NHS BCSP) programme, including planning for the age extension in the programme from 60 down to 50 years old, and reducing the Faecal Immunochemical Test (FIT) down from 120 micrograms per gram.

The age extension for bowel screening started in April 2021 with the 56-year-old cohort and, based on modelling and clinical advice, has been planned to gradually reduce to 50 years old by 2025. This has been done to ensure that screening centres can manage any required increase in colonoscopy capacity.

NHS England has advised that planning is well underway to lower the threshold of the FIT from 120 micrograms per gram to 80 micrograms per gram in the NHS BCSP in England. Further updates on how this will be implemented are expected early in the new year.