Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the regulation of artificial intelligence use in healthcare; and what assessment they have made of the potential need for legislation to protect patient safety and address algorithm-bias, clinicians’ accountability, and medical legal liability within the NHS.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare is already subject to a range of legal, regulatory, and assurance frameworks, and bodies such as the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, the Care Quality Commission, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, the Health Research Authority, and the Information Commissioner’s Office, all have important roles to play in ensuring that AI technologies are safe, effective, evidence-based, and used responsibly within healthcare settings.

The Government has also established the National Commission into the Regulation of AI in Healthcare to advise on how regulation should evolve as AI becomes more embedded in clinical pathways. The commission is considering issues including patient safety, algorithmic bias, accountability, transparency, and the evidence needed to support safe deployment. Its recommendations will inform future policy and regulatory development.

Over time, AI is expected to support National Health Service staff by reducing administrative burdens, improving productivity, and enabling more time to be spent on patient care. From a training perspective, the Government’s current focus is therefore to upskill staff so they can make effective, safe, and appropriate use of the new technologies as they become available.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to re-train administrative and clerical NHS staff for patient-facing roles or for other career progression within the NHS, in relation to the rise of artificial intelligence in healthcare.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare is already subject to a range of legal, regulatory, and assurance frameworks, and bodies such as the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, the Care Quality Commission, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, the Health Research Authority, and the Information Commissioner’s Office, all have important roles to play in ensuring that AI technologies are safe, effective, evidence-based, and used responsibly within healthcare settings.

The Government has also established the National Commission into the Regulation of AI in Healthcare to advise on how regulation should evolve as AI becomes more embedded in clinical pathways. The commission is considering issues including patient safety, algorithmic bias, accountability, transparency, and the evidence needed to support safe deployment. Its recommendations will inform future policy and regulatory development.

Over time, AI is expected to support National Health Service staff by reducing administrative burdens, improving productivity, and enabling more time to be spent on patient care. From a training perspective, the Government’s current focus is therefore to upskill staff so they can make effective, safe, and appropriate use of the new technologies as they become available.