Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made potential merits of the NHS providing the option of self-sampling as part of the cervical screening programme.

The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC), the independent body that advises Ministers and the National Health Service in all four countries on screening matters, reviewed the evidence on the use of human papillomavirus (HPV) self-sampling as a programme modification within the NHS cervical screening programme at its meeting in February 2019. The recommendation by the Committee recognised that self-sampling was a promising test but required further work to ensure its feasibility and value in the current screening programme. Minutes of the UK NSC’s meeting can be viewed at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/uk-national-screening-committee-uk-nsc

The UK NSC welcomes any published peer review evidence that can support the use of self-sampling within the cervical screening programme.