Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding (a) is currently available and (b) will be made available for pilot projects trialling new digital innovations in the NHS; and what (i) the criteria and (ii) the process is for applying for that funding.

There are a number of schemes accessible to those seeking to trial digital innovations in the National Health Service. One example is the Digital Health Technology Catalyst competition which is a £35 million fund run over four years as part of the industrial Strategy Challenge Fund. This scheme aims to address challenges identified in the Accelerated Access Review and to help grow the digital health sector. In addition the Small Business Research Initiative connects public sector connects challenges with innovative ideas from industry, supporting companies to generate economic growth and enabling improvement in achieving Government objectives.