Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of (a) Genomics England Limited and (b) the NHS Genomic Medicine Service in (i) stimulating and (ii) facilitating research activity.

The NHS Genomic Medicine Service (NHS GMS), in partnership with Genomics England (GEL), delivers a national whole genome sequencing service, as part of routine care for rare disease and cancer patients. GEL delivers the National Genomic Research Library (NGRL) to store consented genomic and clinical data, enabling approved researchers to access the data securely and responsibly for health research. The NGRL currently comprises of approximately 170,000 whole genomes. Over 1,500 academic and industry researchers have access, working across 1,000 research projects since 2018. GEL and the NHS GMS also facilitate research programmes, including the Generation Study, Diverse Data, and Cancer 2.0. In addition, eight NHS Genomic Networks of Excellence have been established to generate evidence and models of adoption for new genomic technologies, and the NHS Genomics Research and Innovation Collaborative ensures coordination between the National Health Service, GEL, and the National Institute for Health and Care Research.