Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in view of developments in genomic medicine and the case for communicating accurately and sensitively the significance of genomic data to patients, they will reconsider the possibility of mandatory registration of genomic counsellors.

The Government has emphasised the importance of developing a well-trained National Health Service work force to benefit from the advances in genomic medicine. The education and training requirements of genetic counsellors and their regulatory arrangements are currently being considered as part of the Health Education England’s Genomics Programme. NHS England is focused on ensuring it fulfils its contribution to meeting the objectives of the 100,000 Genomes Project and the elements for which it is accountable. This includes establishing NHS Genomic Medicine Centres through a robust procurement process, as part of which all potential NHS Genomic Medicine Centres will be required to demonstrate what arrangements they will put in place to ensure validated findings are fed back to patients in an appropriate and timely manner.