Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in Northern Ireland on using AI technology for prostate cancer screening.

The Government follows the advice of the UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC). The UK NSC currently does not recommend screening for prostate cancer because the current best test is not accurate enough for use in asymptomatic men.

We are aware of very early-stage trials into artificial intelligence in prostate cancer detection and we look forward to these trials reporting formally so that the evidence can be carefully considered.

In the meantime, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has not had any conversations with his counterparts in Northern Ireland on this issue. Implementation of any UK NSC screening recommendation is a devolved matter.