NHS Cervical Screening Programme
(3 days, 20 hours ago)
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Ashley Dalton)
I would like to inform the House that I have accepted the UK National Screening Committee’s recommendation to further risk stratify the cervical screening programme in England. This increases the opportunities to test and recall women and people with a cervix who have human papillomavirus (HPV) while extending the cervical screening intervals from three to five years in England for individuals who have a negative HPV test. This will bring England’s cervical screening intervals in line with those of Wales and Scotland.
The NHS cervical screening programme in England provides all women between the ages of 25 and 64 with the opportunity to be screened routinely to detect HPV infection or cervical abnormalities at an early, more treatable stage. The aim of the programme is to reduce the number of women who develop invasive cervical cancer and reduce the number who die from it.
Cervical screening does not test for cancer; it is a step before which helps to detect the risk of developing cervical cancer. This is because since December 2019, the primary screen in the NHS cervical screening programme has been a test to detect high-risk HPV which causes nearly all cervical cancers. A negative screen for HPV means that the chances of developing a cancer within five years are very small, as it can take around 10 years or more from the time HPV is detected to developing cervical cancer.
Those who test positive for HPV are already being followed up with yearly testing. This is important to ensure that individuals are monitored for any early signs of cervical abnormalities and provided the necessary treatment.
Because HPV testing is a more accurate and highly sensitive screening test, which detects the risk of developing cervical cancer before it develops, we are able to screen people based on their individual risk rather than just their age. This means reducing how often people who are HPV negative are screened, while concentrating efforts on more frequent screening for those that need it. This is a positive step as women do not have to undergo unnecessary testing and the associated anxiety that can be experienced.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the UK National Screening Committee for continuing to provide invaluable expert advice on the introduction of new screening programmes and modifications to existing ones, and especially on achieving the right balance between benefit and harms.
I would also like to pay tribute to and thank all those who work to deliver high quality and safe screening across the country.
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Automated Vehicles Act 2024: Implementation
(3 days, 20 hours ago)
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Lilian Greenwood)
I wish to provide the House with an update on steps the Government are taking to implement the Automated Vehicles Act 2024 and kick-start economic growth, a top priority in the Government’s plan for change. The AV Act delivers one of the most comprehensive legal frameworks of its kind anywhere in the world, with safety at its core, which will give potential operators, tech developers and manufacturers the confidence to invest in the UK. It sets out clear legal responsibilities so businesses know where they stand, establishes a safety framework and creates the necessary regulatory powers. The AV Act implementation programme has been designed to maximise innovation, enabling investors and operators to develop and deploy the creative mobility solutions that can drive growth. This comes as part of a Government-wide programme of work using artificial intelligence to deliver the plan for change, with AVs being a clear example of how AI will bring tangible benefits to the public.
Automated passenger services
Today I can announce that the Government will accelerate the introduction of automated passenger services regulations, subject to the outcome of a consultation later this summer. This will provide businesses with the regulatory confidence to invest in testing and deploying these innovative services on our streets, reinforcing the UK’s position among the world leaders in tech deployment. It will help facilitate commercial pilots of services with paying passengers and no safety driver to be deployed from spring 2026.
The APS permitting regime was created to address the complexities of applying current taxi, private hire vehicle and public service vehicle legislation to passenger services that would operate without a driver.
Protecting marketing terms for AVs
Today, I launched a consultation, and an accompanying draft statutory instrument, on protecting marketing terms for AVs; the consultation will run for 12 weeks. The AV Act sets out an authorisation process to determine whether a vehicle can safely drive itself without being controlled or monitored by a human. We want to support the innovators and businesses that are building genuinely groundbreaking tech by protecting certain terms, so that they can only be used to describe authorised self-driving vehicles, boosting investor confidence, consumer trust and driver certainty.
This consultation aims to identify the words, expressions, symbols or marks that should be used to describe only authorised AVs. The Government expect to bring forward secondary legislation following careful consideration of consultation responses. Our aim is for these regulations to come into effect in early 2026; they will be subject to the negative procedure.
Statement of safety principles for AVs
Today, I have published a call for evidence on the statement of safety principles, which will consider the safety outcomes that should be sought by self-driving vehicles; the call for evidence will also run for 12 weeks. Public confidence in the safety of these vehicles will be essential to take advantage of the huge economic opportunities they will present. The Department for Transport’s monitoring and annual reporting will consider performance against these principles. The AV Act specifies that the safety principles must be framed with a view to ensuring that authorised AVs achieve a safety level equal to or higher than careful and competent human drivers, and that road safety in Great Britain will improve due to the presence of these vehicles.
I intend to publish a further consultation on the statutory principles in the coming months that will be informed by stakeholder feedback from this call for evidence. The final statutory guidance will be laid in Parliament and will be subject to parliamentary approval.
Transport AI action plan
The announcements made today are a cornerstone of the Department’s new transport AI action plan. This publication is a 23-point plan that sets out how the Government are using AI to improve transport for everyone in the UK. The plan builds upon the transport data strategy and the AI opportunities action plan to align the transport sector with the broader AI agenda, drive economic growth and deliver on the plan for change.
A copy of these publications and associated annexes will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses and published on www.gov.uk.
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