Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the World Health Organisation scheme entitled Cervical Cancer Elimination Initiative, what recent estimate he has made of when (a) 90 per cent of girls will be fully-vaccinated with HPV vaccine before the age of 15, (b) 70 per cent of women will be screened with a high-performance test (i) before the age of 35 and (ii) a second time before the aged of 45, (c) 90 per cent of women identified with cervical disease will receive treatment and (d) 90 per cent of women with (A) pre-cancer and (B) invasive cancer will receive treatment.

The Department is committed to driving uptake of the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine to achieve the World Health Organization’s (WHO) target of 90% coverage. The HPV programme is primarily delivered in schools to support ease of access with alternative sites available for those not in mainstream education. For anyone who missed their offer, catch-up opportunities are offered in schools and general practitioner practices for both girls and boys who are eligible until their 25th birthday.

To support uptake, NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency deliver annual communication campaigns to promote the HPV vaccine via general practices and universities, emphasising the benefits of the HPV vaccine for both boys and girls.

The NHS Cervical Screening Programme aligns with the WHO’s target of 70% of women being screened using a high-performance test, by age 35 years old and again at age 45 years old. Published data shows that coverage for March 2022 was 69.9%.